Buoys with radar reflectors will appear ______ to their actual size.

• A. Larger
• B. Smaller
• C. Same
• D. Unchanged

Answer: (A)

Radar size on a display is governed by radar cross section, not the true physical size. A radar reflector boosts the buoy’s radar cross section, so it returns a stronger echo to the radar. That stronger echo makes the buoy look larger on the screen than its actual dimensions. So, buoys with radar reflectors are detected as bigger targets at a given range, which helps you spot them sooner. Without the reflector, the echo would be weaker and the buoy would appear smaller or less noticeable, rather than larger.