This course is designed as an introduction to Celestial Navigation, using the sun to navigate across oceans.
Until the invention of an accurate clock, mariners navigated across ocean using only a noon sight - measuring the angle of the sun to the horizon at noon. Since the definition of (local) noon is when the sun reaches the highest point in the sky, no time is needed.
This works just fine for determining your Latitude, but is not accurate enough for determining Longitude. This being said, knowing your accurate Latitude is enough to safely navigate the vast majority of the earths oceans. Any of the following locations can be located knowing only your Latitude; any port on either the east or west coast of North / South America, the English Channel, Straights of Gibraltar, any east / west passage. One notable exception would be the Panama Canal - the canal actually runs North and South through Central America, so to find the entrance, one would need an accurate Longitude.
Coastal Navigation (Highly recommended, but not absolutely required)
You will have been taught how to take, compute and plot a noon sight. The assumptions of the course is that he engine died long enough ago that there is no longer any electricity available.
Live Online Webinars: This class is only taught by an instructor, online, typically starting on the mid February each year on Wednesday evenings, running from 7:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. MST. For the 2020 year, the starting date is February 5, 2020. Recorded sessions are available at any time.
Recorded Sessions: Since all of the sessions are recorded it is possible to start at any time and run through the recorded webinars at your own pace. For 2 years from the date of purchase, you will be considered an "Active" student and will have access to all of the videos and live presentations to complete the class. You can reset the clock and retake the course for the cost of the materials package.
Any "active" student can attend any of the live online sessions
Please follow this link - Store/Navigation Courses.
Course runs for 3 consecutive weeks, starting on February 14, 2018.
Topics covered are: