Question 2199 Deck Safety

You are correct, the answer is C) hull. The waterplane area is the intersection of the surface of the water in which a vessel floats and the hull of the vessel. This refers to the area of the horizontal cross-section of the hull at the waterline. The other options are incorrect because: A) the vertical reference plane is not involved in the definition of waterplane area, B) the horizontal reference plane is also not part of the definition, and D) the baseline is a different concept, referring to the lowest part of the hull rather than the waterline intersection.