NAV 118

CABANTING RENDLE AUSTIN I

 WHAT IS NAVIGATION?
 Navigation is the art and science of determining
the position of a ship, plane or other vehicle, and
guiding it to a specific destination. Navigation
requires a person to know the vehicle's relative
location, or position compared to other known
locations. Navigators measure distance on the
globe in degrees
 the process or activity of accurately ascertaining
one's position and planning and following a
route.
 WHAT ARE THE BRANCHES OF
NAVIGATION
Celestial navigation “is the art and science of navigating by the stars, sun, moon, and
planets, and is one of the oldest human arts.” 1 Reasons abound for learning celestial
navigation, such as for use as a backup to modern technology or just for fun. The
general concept is similar to triangulation, where you would use two celestial bodies
and an instrument called a sextant.

GPS (global positioning system), on the other hand, “provides users with
positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT) services”, land or sea. 2 There are three
parts to this system: the space segment, the control segment, and the user segment.

Orienteering Lastly, there is “old fashioned” orienteering. Orienteering is finding

your way through a defined course with checkpoints, using only a map and compass.
There are official teams and competitions where people are challenged to navigate
through a course the fastest. Using a map and compass, one can navigate through any
area. The map provides a picture of the area you are in; the compass tells direction.
 WHAT ARE THE PARTS OF GEO-
NAVIGATION?
 GPS for land seismic surveying Oil and gas exploration requires mapping of the subsurface
geology through seismic surveying. In land seismic surveys, low-frequency acoustic energy is
sent down into the underground rock layers (Figure 10.7). The source of the acoustic energy is
often selected to be a mechanical vibrator consisting of a metal plate mounted on a truck. The
plate is pressed against the ground and vibrated to produce the acoustic energy. In rough
areas, dynamite is still being used as the energy source.
 WHAT ARE THE PARTS OF GEO-
NAVIGATION?
 As the acoustic energy (signal) crosses the various underground rock
layers, it is affected by the physical properties of the rocks. Portions of the
signal are reflected back to the surface by the various layers. The reflected
energy can be detected by special seismic devices called geophones,
which are laid out at known distances from the energy source along the
survey line (Figure 10.7). Upon detecting seismic energy, geophones
output electrical signals that are proportional to the intensity of the
reflected energy [12]. The electrical signals are then recorded on magnetic
tapes for geophysical analysis and interpretation.

 It is clear that unless the positions of the energy source and the geo-phones are
known with sufficient accuracy, the very expensive seismic data becomes useless.
GPS is used to provide the positioning information in a standard or a user-defined
coordinate system. Integrated GPS/GLONASS and GPS/digital barometer systems
have been used successfully in situations of poor GPS signal reception. With the
help of GPS, the environmental impacts (e.g., the need to cut trees) as well as the
operating cost of seismic surveys have been reduced significantly.