The New and Improved Celestial Navigation Poll

[IslandHopper]

Originally Posted by rubyjean

To live is through education, we all learn something new everyday we're here on this earth. Besides what else is there to do, besides drinking rum.

michael..

aaah...but don't drink rum and use the Sextant, i've tried and it don't work.....

[rubyjean]

Originally Posted by IslandHopper

aaah...but don't drink rum and use the Sextant, i've tried and it don't work.....

You too!!! I thought I was the drunken sailor in the world...Michael..

[rebel heart]

Originally Posted by hummingway

Plan to learn, on the "to do list"

It's been on the list for three years and no progress, however, I do feel like I'd like to. It's of little value where I usually sail but that may not be where I always sail and it strikes me as something that would be nice to know.

It's fun to figure out. I don't look up at the sky the same anymore; kind of cool.

[holmek]

Celestial is SO easy with an accurate quartz watch. Take your lat. in the normal way, but be sure to keep checking the time on either side of zenith. Then average out to get the EXACT time of zenith and compare that with GMT and your LHA is your long. Of course you only get one chance a day. !

[nigel1]

I learned when I started in the Merchant Navy, not used so much now, but like to keep practicing. I need to keep the skill as we frequently have trainee's onboard, and they are expected to learn this skill as well, they are still examined on CN.

[lolarose]

only people who strugle even to count to ten or do not know what is chart datum or what dept numbers are on their charts will say that celestial navigation is rubish an their sextants are garmin.

[s/v Jedi]

Originally Posted by lolarose

only people who strugle even to count to ten or do not know what is chart datum or what dept numbers are on their charts will say that celestial navigation is rubish an their sextants are garmin.

Now how did I offend you so bad to receive deep insults like that?! I surely never called anything rubbish, those are your words.

Ready anytime to do math tests vs you but be warned that I might be a bit tougher to crack than you think in the mean time, may be you can explain how you use the chart datum for celestial navigation?

ciao!
Nick.

[mdvick]

Originally Posted by rebel heart

Learned, only practice to keep the skills up.

All the rest of the navigation is manual but I think you'd be silly to not make use of a GPS receiver for fixes, sog, and cog. I think it's also silly to head offshore and be one lightning bolt away from figuring out the importance of celestial navigation. Being able to identify the planets, stars, and constellations is pretty cool beyond the navigational benefit.

+1!!

[msponer]

Well, my boat was burglarized at anchor in a rural part of Madagascar. GPS's, handheld radios, outboard, laptops... gone. And no way to get replacements in a reasonable time, since ... when that happens you're whole perception of a place changes. You just want to leave and not stick around waiting for a package to arrive or the thieves to come back for another pass.

They left the sextant -- presumably didn't even know what it was or think it something they could sell. So my friend (who had borrowed the boat from me), used celestial navigation to sail back to civilization.

Do you guys feel like a lightning strike will wipe out a handheld GPS? We wrapped our 'backup' one in aluminum foil, but it felt like witchcraft.

[rebel heart]

Originally Posted by msponer

Do you guys feel like a lightning strike will wipe out a handheld GPS? We wrapped our 'backup' one in aluminum foil, but it felt like witchcraft.

Some dude on here a couple of months ago had his handheld in foil, batteries out, and they had a strike. Everything was fried including that gps receiver in a bag. There are other folks who get a direct strike and end up losing one or two things but otherwise no problems. Seems like a total crap shoot, but total-electronics-destruction is the common thread. I have no first hand experience myself (more than happy to keep it that way if I can).

It just seems weird to me that anyone would feel comfortable telling their passengers "well, if we lose the gps, I really won't have any friggin clue where to go and there shouldn't be any problems with that so here we go."

Everyone on here loves harnesses and jacklines despite rarely if ever truly needing them. A couple hundred bucks for a sextant and a couple of weeks of dorking around with one coupled with free study materials just seems like a really solid and inexpensive tool to have in your arsenal.

[deckofficer]

Eric,

I'll admit it wouldn't be pleasant to be in the middle of a passage and get all your electronic devices fried by a lightning strike. Since all the heavy books have been transferred to CD, (which I just discovered yesterday by clicking on the banner ad for this thread) I would carry my sextant, but lets address the folks that don't know how to celestial navigate. One could always from their last known position, DR to the nearest land mass and from there take land bearings to determine where they are and get to a port. I wouldn't want to navigate that way, but it is doable. Of course the auto pilot is fried too, but unless I'm in very light winds, or no wind and motoring, I would be using the vane anyway.

Off topic, but a side note, the members that make up the top choice, even though they stood a chance of catching a bit of flaming by their admittance of never learning, for me at least, their credibility for everything they post has gone up a notch.

[red_sky]

In the movie Contact they hand Arroway a suicide pill before they blast her into space. She wonders why she would need it. They guy says something like, "We can think of a 1000 ways this mission can go wrong. This pill is for the ways we haven't thought of". I see a wind-up timepiece, an almanac, a sextant and the knowledge of how to use them much the same way. For the way's things can go wrong you haven't imagined. I consider those things prime safety gear on any passage. Those and a volleyball named Wilson.

[lolarose]

Originally Posted by s/v Jedi

Now how did I offend you so bad to receive deep insults like that?! I surely never called anything rubbish, those are your words.

Ready anytime to do math tests vs you but be warned that I might be a bit tougher to crack than you think in the mean time, may be you can explain how you use the chart datum for celestial navigation?

ciao!
Nick.

did i mention you. if you found ofended, what i can do. there is old saying, "where is smoke, there is fire"


i do not said that you need chart datum for celestial navigation. i just mentioned someone who was complaining that his GPS not exactly agre with the chart. . other member try to help him and mentioned chart datum, and his relpy questin was what is chart datum.

[deckofficer]

Originally Posted by lolarose

did i mention you. if you found ofended, what i can do. there is old saying, "where is smoke, there is fire"


i do not said that you need chart datum for celestial navigation. i just mentioned someone who was complaining that his GPS not exactly agre with the chart. . other member try to help him and mentioned chart datum, and his relpy questin was what is chart datum.

I'm not sure GPS does what we as mariners automatically do, and that is reference our tide books to determine the tide datum. At least that is what our charts are based on.

OK, I've re-read the post, if all your asking is chart datum, just the distance to the sea floor based on tide datum.

[IslandHopper]

Originally Posted by lolarose

did i mention you. if you found ofended, what i can do. there is old saying, "where is smoke, there is fire"


i do not said that you need chart datum for celestial navigation. i just mentioned someone who was complaining that his GPS not exactly agre with the chart. . other member try to help him and mentioned chart datum, and his relpy questin was what is chart datum.

It's ok buddy, i knew what you where talking about......

It's just that old sailor Paranoia myth, which coincidently.....

http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/...oid-39660.html

.....ME, YOU TALKING ABOUT ME!!.....