Occulting indicates what relation between light and darkness?

• A. Duration of light is shorter than darkness
• B. Duration of light is longer than the duration of darkness
• C. Periods of light and darkness are equal
• D. Lights flash briefly at intervals

Answer: (B)

Occulting describes a light pattern where the signal stays on for a longer portion of each cycle than it stays off. In practice, you see the light on most of the time with only brief periods of darkness as it eclipses.

So the duration of light is longer than the duration of darkness. For example, a cycle where the light is on for 40 seconds and off for 20 seconds fits occulting.

If the light were on and off for equal times, that would be a different characteristic (isophase). If the light flashed briefly with longer dark intervals, that would be flashing. If the light were on for a shorter time than the darkness, that would not be occulting.