The Complete On-Board Celestial Navigator: Everything but the Sextant, 2007-2011 Edition »

Dr. George G. Bennett owns and directs CN

Systems, which produces navigational calculator and computer software. He has navigated boats in a number of major ocean races, received numerous honors, and taught navigation for 20 years.

"A practical, convenient, and economical solution for the mariner who wants a backup system to GPS that contains all the essential instructions and data."—Foundation for the Art of Navigation

Your All-in-One Navigation Tool Kit

Celestial navigation remains an essential skill for every mariner who ventures out of sight of land. In this era of electronic navigation, it is the perfect backup system, enabling you to determine your position when the GPS malfunctions or your boat loses electrical power.

Here in one volume is every bit of information you need to understand the process, take sights, and find your location anywhere in the world. Compiled for beginning and experienced celestial navigators alike, and elegantly designed on the assumption that 1-mile precision is perfectly adequate for backup navigation, this handy volume replaces $300 worth and thousands of pages of guides, tables, and almanacs.

The Complete On-Board Celestial Navigator includes:

• A clear, concise primer/refresher that explains the entire process
• A five-year nautical almanac (2007–2011) for determining precise star, sun, moon, and planet locations at the time of sighting
• A star finder
• Sight reduction tables for crunching the numbers and producing a fix anywhere in the world

"The only complete self-contained work available. When your electronic navigation fails, 'steering by the stars' will guide you safely to your destination."—Sydney Afloat (Australia)

George G. Bennett, Ph.D., is the owner and director of CN Systems, which produces navigational calculator and computer software. He is the former head of the School of Surveying, Faculty of Engineering, at the University of New South Wales. An elected Fellow of the Institution of Surveyors and the Institute of Navigation, he has served as a visiting scientist at Her Majesty's Nautical Almanac Office at the Royal Observatory.

Dr. George G. Bennett owns and directs CN

Systems, which produces navigational calculator and computer software. He has navigated boats in a number of major ocean races, received numerous honors, and taught navigation for 20 years.

How to Work a Sight an Overview     6
Introduction     7
Scope and Contents     7
Equipment     8
Sextant     8
Perpendicularity Error     8
Side Error     9
Index Error     9
Clocks     9
Almanac Data     9
Stars and Aries     10
Sun and Planets     10
Moon     11
Summary     11
Alternative Interpolation Method     12
Planning and Observations     12
Planning     12
Sextant Observations     13
Identification     14
Observation Methods     15
Sunrise, Sunset, and Twilight     15
Sextant Altitude Corrections     16
Dip Correction     16
Index Correction     16
Star and Planet Corrections     17
Sun Correction     17
Moon Correction     17
Summary     17
The Marcq St. Hilaire Method     17
Intercept     18
Azimuth     18
Azimuth Tables     19
Weir Diagrams     20
The PositionFix     20
Amplitudes     21
Polaris     22
Azimuth     22
Latitude     22
Sun Observations     23
Running Fixes     23
Meridian Observations     23
Sight Reduction at Very Low Altitudes     24
Tables, Examples, and Forms
Constants and Formulas     25
GHA Aries and Star Ephemerides     26
Sun and Planet Ephemerides     36
Sun and Planet Interpolation and Altitude Corrections     66
Moon Ephemerides     68
Moon Declination Interpolation     98
Moon (GHA-GMT) Interpolation     99
Moon Altitude Corrections     101
Sextant Altitude Analysis Example     103
Prediction and Identification     104
LAT of Sunrise and Sunset     130
LAT of Civil Twilight     131
Sight Reduction Tables     132
Azimuth Tables     152
Weir Diagrams     156
Polaris (Latitude and Azimuth]     160
Change of Altitude in 5 Minutes of Time     161
Sight Reduction Example: Stars, Planet, and Moon     162
Running Fix Example: Sun     164
Alternative Interpolation Table (Calculator)     166
Form: Sextant Altitude Analysis     167
Form: Sight Reduction     168
Form: Sight Reduction (Plot)     169
The Navigational Stars     170
Index     173
Conversion of Time to Arc     176