Sea marker is made from sheets of polyolefin material. Material, attached to inflatable polyethylene tube, is coated with bright dye and is effective even in choppy water

Naimer, J.

Radnofsky, M. I.

English

NASA Technical Reports Server

August 1975	 B75-10166 
NASA TECH BRIEF 
Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center 
NASA Tech Briefs announce new technology derived from the U.S. space program. They are issued to encourage 
commercial application. Tech Briefs are available on a subscription basis from the National Technical Information 
Service, Springfield, Virginia 22151. Requests for individual copies or questions relating to the Tech Brief program may 
be directed to the Technology Utilization Office, NASA, Code KT, Washington, D.C. 20546. 
Highly-Visible Air-Sea Rescue Marker 
The problem: 
Modern aircraft and ships carry sea dye markers to 
assist rescue teams during emergencies. If a disaster 
occurs, the survivors at sea release these dyes into the 
water to make the area visible to rescue aircraft. The 
dyes, however, are not very effective because they 
dissipate very rapidly in choppy waters.
material is folded into a compact package which is 
easily opened. Once in the water, the tube can be 
inflated to spread the material to its maximum 
dimensions, forming a highly-visible, long lasting, 
rescue panel. 
Note: 
No further documentation is available. Specific 
The solution:	 questions, may be directed to: 
A more permanent sea marker can be made from 	 Technology Utilization Officer 
sheets of polyolefin material. This material is coated	 Johnson Space Center 
.	 with a bright dye and is effective even in choppy 	 Code AT3 
water.	 Houston, Texas 77058 
Reference: B75-10166 
How it's done: 
Commercial polyolefins such as polyethylene and 
polypropylene can be used for the sheets. Both have a 
lower specific gravity than seawater and therefore 
float on the surface. They can be made either as a 
continuous film or as fibrous materials. Other low-
density materials can also be used. 
The material is coated with a bright fluorescent 
pigment or dye. Suitable colors include bright red and 
orange shades such as those worn by highway 
maintenance crews. An inflatable polyethylene tube is 
attached to the periphery of the material. The
Patent status: 
Inquiries concerning rights for the commercial use 
of this invention should be addressed to: 
Patent Counsel 
Johnson Space Center 
Code AM 
Houston, Texas 77058 
Source: M. I. Radnofsky and J. Naimer

Johnson Space Center
(MSC-12564) 
Categories: 05 (Life Sciences) 
04 (Materials) 
07 (Machinery) 
This document was prepared under the sponsorship of the National
	
Government assumes any liability resulting from the use of the 
Aeronautics and Space Administration. Neither the United States
	
information contained in this document, or warrants that such use 
Government nor any person acting on behalf of the United States 	 will be free from privately owned rights.
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Highly-visible air-sea rescue marker

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