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A diagram of a typical nautical sextant, a tool used in celestial navigation to measure the angle between two objects viewed by means of its optical sight. Celestial navigation, also known as astronavigation, is the practice of position fixing using stars and other celestial bodies that enables a navigator to accurately determine their actual current physical position in space or on the ...
It is an astronomical method of calculating the longitude at which a position line, drawn from a sight by sextant of any celestial body, crosses the observer's assumed latitude. [1] In order to calculate the position line, the time of the sight must be known so that the celestial position i.e. the Greenwich Hour Angle (Celestial Longitude ...
In astronomy, coordinate systems are used for specifying positions of celestial objects (satellites, planets, stars, galaxies, etc.) relative to a given reference frame, based on physical reference points available to a situated observer (e.g. the true horizon and north to an observer on Earth's surface). [1]
Ecliptic latitude or celestial latitude (symbols: heliocentric b, geocentric β), measures the angular distance of an object from the ecliptic towards the north (positive) or south (negative) ecliptic pole. For example, the north ecliptic pole has a celestial latitude of +90°. Ecliptic latitude for "fixed stars" is not affected by precession ...
Knowing Greenwich time and local time, the navigator can work out longitude. [1] Local time can be determined from a sextant observation of the altitude of the Sun or a star. [8] [9] Then the longitude (relative to Greenwich) is readily calculated from the difference between local time and Greenwich Time, at 15 degrees per hour of difference.
By subtracting this from 90°, he would find that the zenith distance is 90°, which is his latitude. Observer C at the same time is at latitude 20°N on the same meridian, i.e. on the same longitude as Observer A. His measured altitude would be 70°, and subtracting this from 90° gives a 20° zenith distance, which in turn is his latitude. In ...
Finding the latitude requires measuring the vertical angle (altitude) of X from the horizon using a sextant, the declination of X from a reference book, and a set of sight reduction Tables. The sun, moon, and planets move relative to the celestial sphere, but only the stars' hour angles change with the rotation of the earth, completing a full ...
The first and second effects are considered by so-called mean places of stars, contrary to their apparent places as seen from the moving Earth. Usually the mean places refer to a special epoch , e.g. 1950.0 or 2000.0 .