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SYLLABUSES
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NAVIGATION
[First Year] [Second
Year] [Third Year] [Fourth
Year]
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FIRST YEAR
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FIGURE OF THE EARTH: Axis, poles, great and small circles, equator, meridians; latitude, parallel of latitude, difference of latitude; prime meridian, longitude, difference of longitude; direction on the Earth's surface, true course, rhumb line; geographical mile, nautical mile, departure.
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PLANE SAILING: The relationship between true course, distance, d. lat. and dep.; the plane sailing triangle; the traverse table; to find the d. lat. and dep. corresponding to a given true course and distance or vice versa by scale drawing, calculation, and by the use of traverse tables.
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PARALLEL SAILING: The relationship between dep. and d. long. in any given latitude; proof of formulae; the parallel sailing triangle; to convert dep. into d. long. or d. long. into dep. by calculation and by traverse tables; solution of problems involving simple application of formulae.
Use of mean latitude for conversion of dep. into d. long. and vice versa when the ship's course does not lie along a parallel of latitude nor the distance exceed 600 miles: from a given position to find the position reached after steering a given true course and distance: to find the true course and distance between two given positions: solutions by calculation and by traverse tables.
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MERCATOR CHART: Meridians and parallels, scales of latitude and longitude, measurement of distance; general idea of construction to obtain its characteristics; meridional parts, difference of meridional parts (D.M.P.); advantages and disadvantages of the Mercator chart.
Mercator sailing: To calculate the course and distance between any two given positions.
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MARINER'S COMPASS: Magnetic meridian, variation, deviation, compass error; true, magnetic and compass courses and bearings; methods of conversion of true direction to compass direction and vice versa.
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TRAVERSE SAILING (DAY'S WORK): to find by plotting, and by the use of traverse tables, the dead reckoning position (D.R.) of the ship after steaming various courses and distances. Leeway as the effect of wind. Set and drift of current or tide. The estimated position (E.P.). How to find the set and drift by comparing the observed position with the D.R. position.
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SECOND YEAR
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CHARTWORK: Admiralty Charts, signs and abbreviations, natural scale, tidal information; to find the true course and distance between two points and, given the variation and deviation of the compass, to find the magnetic and compass courses; position line by bearing of a
terrestrial object; to fix the position by cross bearings: to fix the position by
bearings of one or more objects with a run between and allowing for a current; to find the course to steer between two points making allowance for current and wind; to find the deviation by means of transit bearings.
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SAILINGS: Harder examples on day's work and Mercator sailing. To find the D.R. given course and distance and initial position.
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THE CELESTIAL SPHERE: Equinoctial, poles of the equinoctial, meridians or hour circles, declination, parallels of declination; the Earth's orbit, apparent path of the Sun, ecliptic, equinoxes and solstices, the seasons; equinoctial points, First Point of Aries, Right Ascension, sidereal hour angle.
Earth's rotation and consequent apparent daily motion of the stars and Sun; hour angles, measurement of time; sidereal time, apparent solar time, the mean Sun, mean solar time, equation of time; Greenwich and local hour angles of the First Point of Aries and Sun and stars.
Visible, sensible and rational horizon, zenith, vertical circles, prime vertical, observed' altitude, dip, semi-diameter, apparent altitude, refraction, parallax, true altitude, zenith distance, azimuth.
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FIGURE DRAWING: Illustration of any of the above definitions by figures drawn reasonably to scale where necessary on the plane of the rational horizon, meridian or equinoctial.
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SEXTANT: Knowledge of parts and use for taking altitudes of celestial bodies; index error
'on' or 'off' the arc; conversion of sextant altitude of Sun or stars into true altitude.
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THE NAUTICAL ALMANAC: General use and method of extracting data (excluding Moon and planet) with all necessary interpolation to give an accuracy of 1 second of time or 0'.2 of arc.
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POSITION LINES: The geographical position of a celestial body; to express the position of a celestial body in terms of declination and Greenwich hour angle; thence to fix its geographical position in terms of latitude and longitude; circles of equal zenith distance or equal altitude; elementary theory of position circles and position lines. Special case of the position line when the body is on (a) the meridian, and (b) the prime vertical.
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MERIDIAN ALTITUDE: To find the G.M.T. of meridian passage of the Sun; to find the latitude and position line by observation of the Sun or stars when on the meridian; to check by a figure drawn reasonably to scale.
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| THIRD YEAR |
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CHARTWORK: Further examples in practical chartwork within the scope of the second year syllabus.
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STARS: Recognition of the principal stars used for navigation; use of rough sketches to show their position in or relative to the constellations; star charts.
To show by a figure that the elevation of the pole is equal to the latitude of the observer; the condition
for a celestial body to be circumpolar; latitude by observation of Polaris using the pole star tables.
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AZIMUTHS: Construction and use of the azimuth mirror; to find the L.H.A. Sun or L.A.T. and thence to determine the true azimuth of the Sun by means of azimuth tables and A.B.C. tables with particular attention to proper interpolation; to find the compass error and, given the variation, to find the deviation for the direction of the ship's head.
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AMPLITUDE: Definition of amplitude; position of Sun for amplitude observation; to find the true amplitude of the Sun by azimuth or amplitude tables or by formula and thence the compass error and deviation. General conditions governing the value of the hour angle at rising and setting, i.e. when more than six hours or less than six hours; twilight; condition for body to cross the prime vertical.
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POSITION LINES: Position lines by observation of the Sun: (a) longitude by chronometer method-consideration of the PZX triangle; with a chosen latitude to calculate the local hour angle; thence to fix the longitude of the point where the position line crosses the chosen parallel of latitude; to obtain the direction of the position line by the A.B.C. or other tables. (b) Marcq St Hilaire
method - consideration of the PZX triangle; using a chosen latitude and longitude to calculate the zenith distance; comparison with the true zenith distance as found from the sextant observation, intercept, thence to fix a point on the position
line, intercept terminal point; to obtain the direction of the position line by A.B.C. or other tables. (c) Show by plotting that either method gives the same position line.
Position line by ex-meridian observation of the Sun; consideration of the PZX triangle in the case of the Sun when near the meridian; using a chosen longitude to obtain the local hour angle and thence to calculate the latitude of the point where the position line crosses the chosen meridian of longitude; to obtain the direction of the position line by A.B.C. or other tables; solution by ex-meridian tables.
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GREAT CIRCLE SAILING: Great circle as the shortest distance; vertex; application of formulae to the great circle sailing triangle to calculate the distance, initial and final courses.
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| FOURTH YEAR |
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To obtain the local hour angle of a star and by means of azimuth or A.B.C. tables to determine the true bearing of the star; given the compass bearing and the variation, to find the compass error and deviation.
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POSITION LINES: To determine position lines by stellar observations. To calculate the approximate altitude of a star as a guide for setting the sextant when the star is on the meridian. To determine the latitude and position line by an observation of a star. on the
meridian below the pole. Given two position lines obtained by simultaneous observations to find the position of the ship by plotting.
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CHARTWORK: To find the ship's position when given the horizontal angles between three fixed points, importance of selection of suitable points; distance off by vertical angle using tables; horizontal and vertical danger angles to clear
off-shore dangers; to find the distance off alight when dipping; distance off by doubling the angle on the bow; to set a course to pick up a light at a given angle on the bow; convergency of the meridians and the correction of W/T bearings. Radar ranges for position finding.
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TIDES: Attraction of the Moon and Sun; conjunction, opposition and quadrature; spring and neap tides; age of tide; chart datum, rise of tide, height of high and low water, range, mean tide level, times of high and low water, duration; use of Admiralty tide tables (standard ports only) and thence by means of the tables to find (a) the height of tide at a given instant and thence the total depth of water at a given place or the actual height of a Lt. Ho. above water level; (b) to find by the tables the time when the tide will reach a given level.
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SEXTANT: Principles involved: the three main errors and their elimination by adjustment; methods of finding the index error.
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CHRONOMETER: Principal parts; effect of temperature and method of compensation; stowage and care; winding; packing for transport; finding the error by
W/T signals, use of daily rate.
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