CELESTIAL NAVIGATION Section 17

The Sailings

Prepared by: John C. Hudson Saanich Peninsula Squadron, VISD

Jan 2006 / Rev. Jan 2007

Sailings used for such things as: - determining distance and course between 2 known points - finding point of arrival after travelling given distance and course

- for short distances, information can be obtained by plotting on Mercator Chart - for longer distances, easier to use mathematical solution with calculator and trigonometrical functions

These methods are called The Sailings - types of sailings are: - Plane Sailing (this section) - Mid-Latitude Sailing (this section) - Traverse Sailing (section 18) - Great Circle Sailing (section 19)

The Sailing Triangle

- boat sails distance D from point X to Y on course angle C - boat moves north a distance of XZ - if Latitude of X and distance XZ known, Latitude of Y can be calculated

The Sailing Triangle

- not as easy to calculate Longitude of Y - distance covered by a degree of Longitude varies with distance from equator
(section 15.1)

Latitude and Departure

- distance in miles XZ known as difference in Latitude - distance in miles ZY is called departure p

Latitude and Departure

- units of measure are as noted in triangle - if distance D and course angle C known, and p can be calculated using trigonometrical functions

Course in a Quadrant: azimuth angle or

direction between 2 points as measured from either a northerly or southerly meridian in an E or W direction

Course in a Quadrant
- angle can never exceed 90 - 4 quadrants are NE, SE, SW and NW - actual course sailed is Cn to indicate measured clockwise from N

Plane Sailing (use if sailing < 100 miles)

triangle XP1P2 formed by: - meridian through point of departure P1 - destination at parallel of Latitude P2 - course P1 to P2

Plane Sailing
Sin C = p / D Cos C = / D Tan C = p / where D = distance travelled (miles) = difference in Latitude (miles or arc) p = departure (miles) or difference in Longitude (arc) C = vessels course (in quadrant)

Plane Sailing Example - find difference Latitude and departure p, if D = 15.6 miles
= D Cos C = 15.6 Cos 27 = 13.9 miles p = D sin C = 15.6 Cos 27 = 7.1 miles

Mid-Latitude Sailing (use if sailing < 1000 miles) - meridians of Longitude converge towards North and South Poles - distance covered between meridians of Longitude is dependent on Latitude - Mid-Latitude sailings more accurate than plane sailing but less accurate than other methods

Mid-Latitude Sailing
- to convert departure p (miles) to difference in Longitude DLo (degrees and minutes of arc), first necessary to calculate Mid-Latitude Lm (degrees) - Lm is arithmetical mean of initial Latitude L1 and final Latitude L2

Mid-Latitude Sailing
Mid-Latitude (Lm) = (L1 + L2)/2 or = L1 +/- (1/2) * Example: if L1 = 33 N and L2 = 35 N Lm = (33 + 35)/2 = 68/2 = 34

Mid-Latitude Sailing
- having derived Mid-Latitude Lm (degrees),
difference in Longitude DLo calculated by:
(answer in minutes or miles and has to be converted to DLo (degrees & minutes) arc degrees and minutes)
L2
(miles)

DLo = p / Cos Lm
where:
- departure Latitude = L1 - destination Latitude = L2 - departure = p (miles) - diff. of Latitude = (miles)
L1 (L1 & L2 in degrees and minutes) Lm

1) Mid-Latitude Sailing - find Cn and D,

given point of departure L1 and Lo1, destination L2 and Lo2, DLo steps: Lm = (L1 + L2)/2 Lm calc DLo & convert to minutes p = DLo Cos Lm L ,Lo = L1 ~ L2 C = Tan-1 p / then get quadrant Cn D = / Cos C
1 1

L2,Lo2

1) Mid-Latitude Sailing Example:

- point of departure L 43 13.5 N, Lo 57 18.3 W - point of arrival L 15 27.1 N (error in text), Lo 19 22.1 W - find Cn & D: Lm = (43.225 + 15.452)/2 = 29.339 N DLo = (57 18.3 - 19 22.1) = 37 56.2 = 2276.2 to E p = DLo Cos Lm = 2276.2 Cos 29.339 = 1984.2 miles to E = 43.225 15.452 = 27.773 = 1666.4 miles to S C = Tan-1 p / D= = Tan-1 1984.2/1666.4 = S 50.0 E Cn = 180 - 50.0 = 130.0 / Cos C = 1666.4 / Cos 50.0 = 2592.5 miles

2) Mid-Latitude Sailing - find destination L2 and Lo2, given point of departure L1 and Lo1, Cn and D
steps: find C quadrant from Cn = D Cos C (miles to degrees) (degrees & Min.) L2 = L1 P = D Sin C (miles) DLo = p / Cos Lm Lo2 = Lo1 DLo
DLo

L2,Lo2

Lm

L1,Lo1

2) Mid-Latitude Sailing Example:

point of departure L 48 20.2 N, Lo 7 02.1 W course 253, distance 2382 miles, find destination:
C = 253 - 180 = S 73 W = D Cos C = 2382 Cos 73 = 696.4 or miles = 11 36.4 to S L2 = 48 20.2 N - 11 36.4 N = 36 43.8 N p = D Sin C = 2382 Sin 73 = 2277.9 miles to W Lm = (48.337 + 36.730) / 2 = 42.533 DLo = p / Cos Lm = 2277.9 / Cos 42.533 = 3091 = 51 31.3 to W Lo2 = (7 02.1 W + 51 31.3) = 58 33.4 W