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Subject: Re: from a watcher
From: Peter Fogg (ffive@XXX.XXX)
Date: Tue Oct 22 2002 - 18:30:09 EDT
>
The form I use goes:
1 Day and Date (local)
2 Body
3 Observed Watch Time
4 Watch Correction (+Slow, -Fast)
5 Standard Time
6 Time Zone (+West -East)
7 GMT (h m s) - check GMT date!
8 GMT (Degrees & Minutes)
9 GHA or (GHA-GMT) of body
10 SHA of star
11GHA (Sum)
12 DR Longitude (+East - West)
13 LHA
14 DR Latitude
15 Declination
16 (column for adding up results of sight reduction)
17 Latitude~Declination
18 Computed Altitude
19 Sextant Altitude
20 Dip
21 Sextant Correction (-On, + Off Arc)
22 Apparent Altitude
23 Altitude Corrrection
24 Observed Altitude
25 Intercept
26 Azimuth
As you can see, it is a little bit 'CN for Dummies' as someone asked for. There
is none of that Ho and Hs stuff, its mostly in plain language.To use with it I
have one page of instructions that walk you through the process step by step
with a Time/Degrees conversion table on the other side. This sheet is covered in
plastic as it gets used all the time and makes a handy bookmark. Everything else
I need is in one slim hardcover book that lies open flat - sight reduction,
examples, almanac, prediction and indentification, star finder, detailed
instructions for everything from noon sights to finding amplitude to finding
latitude via Polaris to averaging sights, 3 different methods for calculating
azimuth and all sorts of other forms that can be photocopied. There is space for
4 bodies on one sheet, 8 if printed on both sides.
David Weilacher wrote:
> Whats wrong with becoming proficient
> enough at sight reduction to make forms moot?
I keep referring back to the form to check, for example, the + and - when
converting local time to GMT and vice versa. This form can be used with other
sight reduction methods, its just a handy way of laying out the process step by
step. It must be great to know and understand the whole process so well you can
carry it all in your head, but I'm not quite there yet.
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