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YOUTUBE VIDEO!

• So the two signals form a hyperbola based on the difference of time between
receiving it from the ship. As long as it has that specific difference, which is more or
less accurate, then a ship can find its path. More than two are used to find its location
CELESTIAL NAVIGATION
Theory, Navigational Astronomy,
The Practice
WHAT IS THE THEORY?

• The basic theory behind Celestial Navigation is that we find our unknown position
from a known position.
• If we have some information we can deduce the rest.
FIND THE SUN

• Imagine the sun is directly


overhead at a particular time.
• Look in the Nautical Almanac
to find out where the sun is.
• That is where we are!
HOW DO WE KNOW?

• How do we know that


the sun is directly
overhead?
• The sextant tells us.
• It measures the angle
form the horizon.
• In this case the angle
would be 90°
BUT!, THE SUN IS NOT OVERHEAD!

• But what if the sun were 1° from


overhead (sextant reads 89°)?
• Then we would be somewhere
on a circle 60 miles (60 nm= 1°)
from where the Nautical
Almanac said the sun was.
• This is a circular line of position
(LOP).
ACTUAL POSITION

• An actual position occurs where


two lines of position (LOP’s)
cross.
• For example: your plotted track
on a chart intersects a circular
LOP.
SECOND LOP

• If we look at the sun later in the


day, we would get a second circle.
• Our position would be at one of
the intersections of the two circles.
• If you still do not know your
position, do a third sight to get a
third circle.
NAVIGATIONAL
ASTRONOMY
Just four things to remember!
#1 PTOLEMY WAS RIGHT!

• Celestial navigation’s view of the


heavens is pre-Copernican.
• We look at an earth-centric
system in which the sun, moon,
planets, and stars revolve around
it.
• It is a what you see is what you get
system.
#2 EINSTEIN WAS RIGHT!

• Space and time are a continuum. In navigational astronomy time =


distance.
• Longitude is measured in degrees where 15° = 1 hour.
• 360° = 24 hours = Earth’s rotation
• 1 second in time = ¼ nautical mile at the equator
• An error in time is an error in longitude
#3 THE COORDINATE SYSTEM
• Earths Coordinates
• Celestial Coordinates
• Observers/Horizon Coordinates
• Ecliptic Coordinate
EARTHS COORDINATES

• Latitude lines running parallel to earth’s


equator at 90° to 0° at the poles.
• Longitude lines running around the earth
thru each pole.
• Longitude lines start at 0° at the
Greenwich Meridian and run 180° east
and west for a total of 360°
• 1° = 60 minutes
• 1minute = 60 seconds
• 1° = 3600 seconds
CELESTIAL COORDINATES
• Celestial Equator: Earth’s equator
extended into space.
• Declination: Earth’s latitude lines
extended into space, going from
the celestial equator, 90°, north
and south to the celestial poles.
• Hour circles: Earth’s longitude
lines extended into space, this can
be measured two ways.
• The Sidereal Hour Angle (SHA) or
right ascension angle, zero starts
at the first point of Aries or vernal
equinox and travel's west to 360°.
If the Greenwich celestial
meridian is used this measurement
is called the Greenwich Hour
Angle (GHA).
OBSERVERS/HORIZON COORDINATES

• Completely dependent on
observer.
• You measure hs to start the
process of finding your
location
ECLIPTIC COORDINATE SYSTEM

• The Ecliptic is the path that


the sun appears to take
among the stars.
• Our navigational
measurement of SHA start at
the first point of Aries or
vernal equinox.
HOW THEY COMPARE
Earth (Terrestrial) Celestial Equator Horizon Ecliptic
equator celestial equator horizon ecliptic

poles celestial poles zenith/nadir ecliptic poles

meridians hour circles/celestial vertical circles circles of latitude


meridians

prime meridian hour circle of Aries principle/prime circle of Aries latitude


vertical circle

parallels parallels of parallels of altitude parallels of latitude


declination

latitude declination altitude celestial altitude

co-altitude polar distance zenith distance celestial co-altitudes

longitude sha/ra/gha/lha/t azimuth/azimuth celestial longitude


angle/amplitude
#4 HOUR ANGLES

• It all starts with Geographic Position (GP). Imagine a string that stretches from the
center of the earth to the center of the celestial body. GP is the point the line passes
thru the earths surface. This point has a location that can be referenced several
ways…
HOUR ANGLE
REMEMBER TIME = DISTANCE
• M – Observers Meridian
• G – Greenwich Meridian
• SHA – Angular distance of a body
westward from the first point of Aries (0-
360)
• RA – Angular distance of body eastward
from the first point of Aries: in time units
(0-24 hrs.)
• GHA – GP’s distance from Greenwich
Meridian (Degree, Min:Sec)
• LHA – GP’s distance west from the
meridian you are located on (Degree,
Min:Sec)
• The Nautical Almanac gives us the GHA of the sun and the moon
for every day, hour and minute of the year.
• For the stars it gives the SHA, which we can then convert, and
worksheets help us figure the LHA by using our longitude.
THE PRACTICE
TAKING THE SIGHT
• Setting up
• Shooting body and noting exact time corrected for watch error and east or
west of Greenwich meridian.
• Correcting for sextant error, height of eye and altitude giving Observed
Altitude.
• Entering body’s data for same time from the Nautical Almanac, apply
corrections.
• Entering tables for sight reduction with:
• Local Hour Angle (LHA)
• Assumed Latitude
• Body's declination (from Almanac) to find the calculated height if you were where you
assumed yourself to be
• This will give you the CALCULATED ALTITUDE as well as the true bearing of the body
NAVIGATIONAL TRIANGLE AKA SPHERICAL
TRIGONOMETRY
• For a given date and time
you know.
• AP - Your assumed position
• GP – Celestials Bodies
position

• Given information that you


have or can drive from
tables or formulas you
determine: Z- Azimuth
angle and Zenith distance.
PLOTTING CELESTIAL FIX
THERE ARE 5 ESSENTIAL PIECES OF DATA FOR REDUCING A
CELESTIAL SIGHT

1. Observed altitude of the Body above the celestial horizon. Measure it with
a sextant (hs), and then apply relevant corrections to get Ho.
2. Latitude and longitude of your assumed position (AP).
3. Precise time of the sextant altitude measurement, in order to calculate Hc
and Zn for the nearby assumed position (AP).
4. Computed altitude (Hc) of the Body as if observed from the AP at the time
of the sextant sight. Requires Almanac ephemerides.
5. Bearing of the Body (azimuth). Azimuth can only be determined for the AP,
not for the vessel's real position; so the navigator needs to be precise about
the time of the sextant altitude, and have confidence in the AP. Requires
Almanac ephemerides.

#1 comes from the sextant sighting, and Almanac data for the date and time
#2 comes from the DR plotting
#3 comes from a timepiece simultaneous to #1.
#4 and #5 come from calculations to solve the navigational triangle with
corners GP, AP and nearest Pole, using #2, #3 and Almanac data.
SINGLE LOP
• Blue line: dead reckoning course.
• Blue half circle/dot: dead reckoning position at
the time you took your sight.
• Red solid line: azimuth bearing toward the GP
of the body (southwest).
• Red dashed line: extension of the azimuth
bearing "away", because in this case the
calculated sextant altitude for the DR position
was larger than the sextant altitude you
observed.
• Green line: the celestial LOP, perpendicular to
the azimuth. Your boat is somewhere on that
green line. This celestial LOP actually is a tiny
segment of the gigantic circle of position around
the GP; at any point on that circle at that precise
moment in time you would find the same sextant
altitude.
• Black box: your Estimated Position; also the
intercept.
• Advance position to new EP. Start new DR line
from this fix
TIMELINE OF NAVIGATION
KAMAL, ASTROLABE
CROSS-STAFF, BACKSTAFF
OCTANT, SEXTANT
HOW THE SEXTANT WORKS
MEASUREMENT WITHOUT HORIZON
REFERENCES

• www.celestialnavigation.net
• Jim Thompson MD CCFP(EM) FCPP: www.jimthompson.net
• Celestial Navigation for Yachtsman, Mary Blewitt, 1995
• Peter Ifland, Ph. D. in Biochemistry (U. of Texas)
Commander in the US Naval Reserve
Author of Taking the Stars: Celestial Navigation from Argonauts to Astronauts, The Mariners'
Museum, Newport News, Virginia, 1998
www.mat.uc.pt/~helios/Mestre/Novemb00/H61iflan.htm
• BobGraham@longcamp.com,www.longcamp.com
• American Practical Navigator, Bowditch, Defense Mapping Agency Hydrographic/Topographic
Center, 1995
• Longitude, Dava Sobel, 1995

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