Celestial Navigation

Anura Seneviratne
Celestial Navigation ???
Art & Science of finding one's
geographical position by astronomical
observations………..
particularly by measuring altitudes of
celestial objects – Sun, Moon, planets, or
stars.
2 Major Areas
• Position Determination
• Compass Error Determination
Why bother ???
With an expensive sextant that needs
support of almanacs, tables, clocks,
clear skies, & a lot of practice ???

& very slow too!

 Why Bother??
• Tremendous satisfaction from knowing & practicing
celestial navigation !!! (very true!)
• Taking sights is fun.
(Who said that!) Ha Ha Ha!! (True again)
• At sea, it gives you a daily project to do!
• Keeps you in touch with sky at night, & can make you
a whiz at star & constellation identification.
(Can impress land-lubbers!)
• Every time you successfully reduce a round of sights,
you’ve accomplished an intellectual riddle!
• & it makes you a better sailor!!!
Not Convinced ??

Then try;

Back-up for your

electronic systems
!!!
Position Determination &
Compass Error
Analogy with Coastal Navigation
You need:
• Chart
• Navigational marks
• Bearing/s
• Distance off
Terminology?

• Great Circles
• Small Circles
• Equator
• Meridians

• Terrestrial Coordinate System ?

Lat - Long
Section 3

Celestial
Coordinate
System

1 <
 Celestial
Sphere??
• Imagine centre of Earth
as centre of heavens!
• Surrounding Earth, there
is a sphere of infinite
radius.
• Called Celestial Sphere.
• Centre of Celestial Sphere
is also centre of Earth.
• All celestial bodies are
considered to lie on its
surface.
Celestial Coordinates
Position of a body is given by 2 co-
ordinates at right angle to each
other, called ??
Declination & Hour Angle.
Dec is similar to Latitude on Earth,
& HA is like longitude.
Celestial Coordinates
Declination
Like Latitude, measured
0° to 90° North or
South of Equinoctial
N

Declination
GP

Equinoctial
γ
Hour Angle

Ecliptic
Sun
 Hour Angles
• Greenwich Hour Angle (GHA)
Angle between Greenwich Meridian &
Celestial Meridian of body
• Local Hour Angle (LHA)
Angle between Meridian of Observer &
Celestial Meridian of body
• Sidereal Hour Angle (SHA)
Angle between Aries & Celestial
Meridian of body
GHA

Greenwich Hour Angle (GHA)

Angle between Greenwich Meridian &
Celestial Meridian of body, always
measured westward.
 GHA
Plane of
Equator
Local Hour Angle (LHA)

Angle between Meridian of

Observer & Celestial Meridian of
body, measured westward.

How do you name it? E or W ?

Conversions
LHA = GHA + East Longitude
LHA = GHA - West Longitude
LHA = GHA + East Longitude
LHA = GHA - West Longitude
 Activity 1
A body’s GHA is 16 °24.3’
Observer’s longitude is 73 °21.1’E
Find LHA & state if E or W
89 °45.3’ W

A body’s GHA is 333 °04.5’

Observer’s longitude is 67 °42.1’W
Find LHA & state if E or W
265 °22.4’ E
Sidereal Hour Angle (SHA)
Angle between Aries & Celestial
Meridian of body, measured
westward.

What is ARIES ???

 Ecliptic
Path of Sun
23rd Sept

23.5°

Γ (Gamma)
Vernal
Equinox
21st March
 CELESTIAL N

COORDINATES
Declination
GP

Equinoctial
γ
Siderial

Sidereal Hour Angle Hour Angle

Ecliptic

(SHA) Sun

Angle between Aries &

Celestial Meridian of
body
SHA is always measured Westwards
from 0°- 360°
 A star on
Celestial
Sphere can
be located
by its

• Declination
• Sidereal Hour Angle.
 Conversions
GHA Star = GHA Aries + SHA Star
Zenith
• Point where a line
projected from Earth’s
centre thru you
intersects Celestial
Sphere.

• Described by Dec, GHA

& SHA.
 Geographical
Position of a
body (GP)

• Line joining a
heavenly body &
centre of Earth,
passes thru Earth’s
surface at it’s GP.

• Given as Latitude
& Longitude.
 GP

GP
Nautical Almanac
 Nautical Almanac
Daily Pages

Increments & Corrections

• Part 1 - increments to GHA
• Part 2 - corrections to GHA &
Declination
 Increments & Corrections
‘v’ –
Difference between tabulated & actual
rate of change of GHA

‘d’ –
Rate of change of Dec for one hour
 V Corrections
Difference between tabulated & actual rate of
change of GHA.

For ‘Sun & Planets’ 15° per Hr is used

Sun : actual is very close, hence negligible
errors
Planets : variable ( ‘v’ value = +2.0 means,
the mean rate is 15 02.0’ )

For Aries : 15 02.46’ is used & is constant,

hence no ‘v’ correction.
TIME
How many suns are there???
• True Sun
N
(Apparent Sun)
On Ecliptic at varying
speeds

Declination
GP
• Dynamical
Mean Sun
On Ecliptic at constant
γ
Equinoctial
speed
Hour Angle

Ecliptic
• Astronomical
Sun
“Mean Sun”
On Equinoctial at
constant speed
 Greenwich Mean Time (GMT)
Universal Time (UT)
Angle between inferior (180°)
meridian of Greenwich & meridian
of Mean Sun

Expressed in units of Time.

Eg: When Mean Sun is 165° West of 180°
meridian, GMT is 11h 00m.
 Relationship Between
Hour-Angle & Time
Mean Sun moves around Earth at
a constant rate of 15°/hour

360° = 24 hours
180° = 12 hours
90° = 6 hours
15° = 1 hour
1° = 4 mins
15’ = 1 min
15’’ = 1 second
Convert 129 °
30.5’ to Time
Ans: 8h 38m 2s

Convert 6h 25m
to Angle
Ans: 96 ° 15’
 Local Mean Time (LMT)

Local Mean-Solar time with

reference to observer’s meridian
 Local Mean Time - LMT
• LMT = GMT - West Longitude
15

• LMT = GMT + East Longitude

15

+E
LMT = GMT - W LIT
 Examples
Your vessel is in longitude 134° 30’E.
GMT is 1200h. What is LMT?
LMT is 2058h

Your vessel is in longitude 110° 15’E.

LMT is 1000h. What is GMT?
GMT is 0239h
 Zone Time

Standard Times do not necessarily follow the meridian

END