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Righting Lever When a vessel which is stable and upright is inclined by an external force, the force of gravity remain stationary but the force of buoyancy moves to the new geometric centre of the underwater volume. As shown in the illustration, the forces separate to form a couple. In the illustration on the left, the triangle GZM is a right triangle with a 90° angle at Z. The line GZ is the horizontal arm of a couple with the force of Buoyancy pulling vertically up and the force of Gravity (Weight or Displacement) pulling vertically down. The action of the couple, in this case, will be to try and rotate the vessel anti-clockwise and to try and return it to the upright position. The line G-Z is known as the Righting Lever Ref. Pg 38 Ch 8

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