Guidance

Celestial Navigation Examination Syllabus

Published 3 January 2018

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1. Course details

1.1 Duration

There is no requirement for a course of study for this exam but candidates may wish to attend a revision course or undertake a self-study preparation program in advance of the examination.

Note

Use and care of the sextant and the methods of calculating and correcting errors will be examined during the oral examination.

1.2 Aims

The aim is to ensure that candidates for Chief Mate and Master are able to fix the ships’ position and determine compass error using celestial observations.

1.3 Level of understanding

The level of understanding should be that considered necessary to conduct an ocean passage world wide.

1.4 Assessment

Assessment will be by a written 2.5 hour examination of four questions. The pass mark will be 65% overall but the candidate must achieve at least 65% in question 1.

2. Syllabus

2.1 Determining the compass error by celestial means

  1. Can determine compass error by azimuth of the sun a star or planet.
  2. Can determine compass error by amplitude of the sun.

2.2 Using celestial bodies to fix position

  1. Can identify and select the most suitable celestial bodies for observation during the twilight period.
  2. Can determine the time of sun rise, sun set and twilight.
  3. Can calculate or use sight reduction tables to determine altitude and and true bearing of a celestial body.
  4. Can use the nautical almanac and calculator or sight reduction tables to obtain the true bearing and intercept from a sextant altitude and chronometer time.
  5. Can accurately plot position lines to obtain an observed position.
  6. Can find an observed position from a transferred position line and a meridian altitude.

2.3 Determine latitude by celestial observation

  1. Can calculate the time of meridian altitude of the sun.
  2. Can calculate the latitude by meridian altitude of the sun.
  3. Can calculate the latitude by Polaris.
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