territorial sea—The offshore zone of a country over which the sovereignty of the state is complete, although ships of other nations are normally accorded the right of innocent passage. The United States traditionally recognized a zone of three nautical miles in breadth; in December 1988, however, the territorial sea was extended to 12 nautical miles from the baselines of the United States.

territorial waters—The waters under the territorial jurisdiction of a state, including its marginal sea (called also marine belt or territorial sea); that part within a certain number of miles of its shore as measured from mean low water mark or from the seaward limit of a bay or mouth of a river; its inland waters, those inside its marginal sea and those within its land territory.

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Source: NSPS “Definitions of Surveying and Related Terms“, used with permission.

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