Maritime flags were first generalized by Frederick Marryat.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maritime_flag_signalling#Mar...

Marryat as well as being a distinguished naval officer was a fine writer. Mister Midshipman Easy. By comparison, Patrick O'Brien wasn't even a sailor. He was a genre writer. The parallel would be Arthur C Clarke vs Ray Bradbury. Clark proposed geostationary satellites and EME in one article, Extra-Terrestrial Relays – Can Rocket Stations Give Worldwide Radio Coverage?