Instructor’s Guide

Subject: Celestial Navigation

Topic: Sextant and altitude corrections

ILOs: At the end of the session the student

should be able to :

1. defines 'sextant altitude’;

2. describes the parts of a sextant;
3. demonstrate how to retrieve and return a sextant
into the storage box;
4. demonstrates how to read a sextant;
5. shows how to correct a sextant into which has been
introduced one or more of error of perpendicularity,
side error or index error;
6. demonstrates how to find the index error of the
sextant by the horizon;
7. describes how to find the index error of the sextant
by the sun;
8. uses the sextant for taking vertical and horizontal
angles;
9. describes the purpose of altitude correction;
10.defines 'visible', 'sensible' and 'rational' horizons;
11.defines 'observed altitude' and 'true altitude’;
12.defines 'dip', 'refraction', 'semi-diameter' and
'parallax', and explains their causes;
13.applies index error;
14.applies the corrections for the items listed in above
objectives and explains the factors determining
their magnitude;
15.illustrates the effect of terrestrial refraction on the
dip and distance of the sea horizon;
16.demonstrates the use the altitude correction tables
in the Nautical Almanac, including reference to
critical tables, interpolation tables and low-altitude
correction tables;
17.obtains the true zenith distance from the true
altitude of the body.