For decades celestial navigation was seen as an increasingly archaic skill, but there is now a resurgence of interest in these traditional navigation skills, writes Rupert HolmesAstro nav is enjoying a resurgence of interest among bluewater sailors. Photo: 59\u00b0 North SailingSailor and navigation expert Stokey Woodall, who has made a living teaching celestial navigation for several decades, has seen interest rise steadily over the past five years. \u201cPeople want to get back to basics, back to nature and are starting to realise we need a system that doesn\u2019t involve electronics,\u201d he says.
\nBruce Jacobs of Rubicon 3 is another enthusiast whose passion has ignited interest in hundreds of others. Rubicon\u2019s four 60ft yachts cover around 40,000 miles a year, using sextants as a primary navigation tool.
\n\u201cCelestial navigation was always central to our vision right from the start,\u201d Jacobs says. \u201cIt\u2019s very much an extension of being in nature and makes you closer to it. It\u2019s an amazing skill and I would encourage anyone to learn it.\u201d
\nGood instruction, either online or in a classroom, will help you grasp the fundamental concepts. Photo: Kristen Berry
\n\u201cI really like the way celestial navigation connects to the history of sailing and the challenge of using it offshore,\u201d says Andy Schell of 59\u00b0 North, which operates adventure sailing voyages on its Swan 48 and 59 yachts.
\n\u201cIt\u2019s a fascinating mix of both art and science. The science behind it gives you a better feel for your place on the surface of the globe, including the relationship between latitude, longitude and time. You don\u2019t get that in the same way using GPS.\u201d
\nLockdown has given many land-bound sailors the time to study, and celestial navigation has been a popular topic. In addition to using the sextant on every offshore passage, Schell teaches at least one land-based course a year.
\nArticle continues below\u2026<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\tBack to basics: Offshore sailing by celestial navigation alone<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\tI have tattoos of a rooster and a pig on my feet. They\u2019re meant to protect me from sinking. I\u2026<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\tSmartphone navigation: Pip Hare\u2019s top tips for sailing by iPhone<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\tNo matter how good navigation apps have become, using your smartphone as a main method of navigation is just not\u2026<\/p>\n
\u201cLast autumn I did one, at which there were 20 people,\u201d he says. \u201cFour weeks ago, we taught a virtual course that had 60 people signed up over two weekends.\u201d
\nTo maintain his own skill set, Schell also has a policy of challenging himself to complete at least one passage every year navigating solely using celestial navigation. At sea, 59\u00b0 North tend to do a 2-3 hour introductory session at the start of each trip.
\nThe Golden Globe Race undoubtedly helped to foster curiosity in celestial navigation, demanding that skippers complete a circumnavigation using only techniques and technology available in 1968.
\nTiming is everything: a 4 second error on the time a sight was taken equates to a 1 mile mistake. Photo: James Mitchell
\nMost of the uptick in interest appears to be people learning for their own satisfaction. RYA training resource manager Craig Burton says that after a decade of steady numbers he has seen a growth of interest in the RYA Yachtmaster Ocean shorebased course during lockdown this year, with many people opting to do online courses at home.
\nWhile the majority view is that seafarers can happily rely on GPS, that thinking is by no means universally held. The United States Naval Academy dropped celestial navigation from its syllabus in 1997, but reinstated it in 2015 due to concerns about the potential to hack or spoof GPS signals.
\nBruce Jacobs cautions against teaching celestial navigation to leisure sailors on the basis that GPS could fail, saying: \u201cYou lose people when you say that.\u201d However, in a world in which we all have time constraints, there are some key practical skills that should be learnt before spending time on learning celestial navigation. As the first stage to guard against instrument failure, Jacobs advises skippers and boat owners learn how to use a multimeter to diagnose electrical system faults.
\nMia Karlsson of 59\u00b0 North taking a morning sight mid-passage. Photo: Andy Schell \/ 59\u00b0North Sailing
\nNot just for experts
\nOne major barrier to learning celestial navigation is that it\u2019s wrongly perceived as being difficult and time-consuming. However, there\u2019s no need to plough through days of complex theory before you can take sights and calculate positions.
\nThe widespread use of Air Navigation Tables for navigation at sea put an end to the requirements for spherical trigonometry well over half a century ago. Since then all that\u2019s required is to be organised and to add and subtract. Each individual step is logical, easy and straightforward, while any complication simply comes from the number of individual steps involved.
\nEveryone I\u2019ve spoken to, and indeed my own experience of teaching celestial navigation more than 20 years ago, agrees that the basics can be taught in as little as two or three days. Using a sextant in testing conditions on a small boat remains an art form that\u2019s improved by practice, but it\u2019s still possible to build enough skill to get useable results in a short time frame.
\nReading the decimal minutes and degrees recorded by sextant. Photo: Andy Schell \/ 59\u00b0North Sailing
\nNoon sights are the easiest to work out and will give your latitude with very little calculation. However, they are often shunned by experienced navigators, as the need to track the sun for a few minutes before and after it reaches its highest altitude requires far more time on deck than for a conventional sun sight. And you don\u2019t get a result if there\u2019s a cloud in the way at the critical moment.
\nEven star sights are nowhere near as complex as is commonly thought \u2013 the seven most appropriate stars are tabulated for every approximate position on earth and every time of day. All you have to do is set the sextant to the altitude given, point it on roughly the correct compass bearing and you\u2019ll see a bright star near the horizon.
\nTweak the sextant so that the star is exactly on the horizon, take the time, and the sight is complete. After a bit of addition and subtraction you\u2019ll get a proper three-point fix in exchange for a few minutes\u2019 work.
\nUsing sight reduction tables to calculate an accurate position. Andy Schell \/ 59\u00b0North Sailing
\n\u201cThe practical side is very simple,\u201d says Woodall. \u201cIt\u2019s measuring an angle and taking the time.\u201d Teaching has evolved to speed the process and aid understanding, with less theory up-front and more time spent getting to grips with the basics.
\n\u201cOnce you give people a taste of celestial navigation and they realise there\u2019s nothing complicated they get very enthusiastic and quickly enjoy it,\u201d he adds.
\nBut before learning about celestial navigation it\u2019s best to be clear about your objectives. \u201cThere\u2019s a huge disconnect now with people doing this as a box ticking exercise, where they take a couple of sights and think they\u2019ve done it, but rarely use celestial navigation for real,\u201d says Jacobs.
\n\u201cWe see it as an extension of the natural way of sailing, of the joys of working in nature. The most sensible way to cross an ocean is in an aircraft. To want to do it on a yacht, travelling at only seven or eight miles an hour, the joy of working so closely with the natural world is important. Celestial navigation adds to that and people love doing it.\u201d
\nCelestial navigation tips
\nRecognise the difference between what you need to know and practice to actually navigate a yacht, and the interesting theoretical aspects and background, which you don\u2019t necessarily need to understand.
\nWhen using air navigation tables everything follows from the assumed position \u2013 make sure you have a solid grasp of this concept.
\nIt\u2019s important to stay grounded and avoid transcribing the wrong figures from the tables. Before you start, estimate the angle of the sun when you\u2019ll be taking your sight. In the northern hemisphere in the morning, for instance, the sun will be in the south-east.
\nPro-formas make sight reduction easy in practice, but may not help when learning the essential concepts.
\nUsing a sextant is much easier than most people have been conditioned to expect.
\nIf you only have time to learn one type of sight, make it a sun-run-sun, not a noon sight.
\nAbout the author
\nRupert Holmes has more than 80,000 miles of offshore experience. As a Yachtmaster Instructor he also taught the RYA Yachtmaster Ocean course.
\nFirst published in the September 2020 issue of Yachting World.
\nThe post Celestial navigation: Why sailing by following the stars is enjoying a resurgence appeared first on Yachting World.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
For decades celestial navigation was seen as an increasingly archaic skill, but there is now a resurgence of interest in these traditional navigation skills, writes Rupert HolmesAstro nav is enjoying a resurgence of interest among bluewater sailors. Photo: 59\u00b0 North … <\/p>\n