Next message: Alexandre E Eremenko: "Re: Astronomy and Celestial Navigation"
Alex
"I wonder how many of the list participant are also into
astronomy? In addition was it astronomy that got you
interested in Cel Nav or was it Cel nav that got you
interested in astronomy?"
As a professional Navigator, I can tell you that even
with the state of the are navigation systems out there,
including GPS, DGPS, etc, Celestial Navigation is still
conducted. I, as a Naval Officer, believe strongly it
ensuring that junior officers that I train and work with
maintain the skill sets requird to conduct celestial
navigation. Not only is it still being trained in the
Canadian Navy and Royal Navy, but many other worldwide
navies. Even with the exponential rise is electornic
navigational systems, electronic systems can, and will
inevitably fail. Having backup systems works...but they
can and will fail too. Electronics will improve, but
they are still falliable. Stars will always be in the
Heavans, and hopefully mariners will always be able to
navigate by them. As for NAVIGATION-L, I am astonished
to see the number of people out there that are
professional mariners that have such a huge interest in
Celestial Navigation. I applaud you.
"A ship in Harbour is safe, but that's not what ship's
are for." - Arabian Proverb
----------------------------------------
Upgrade your account today for increased storage; mail
forwarding or POP enabled e-mail with automatic virus
scanning. Visit our member benefits page at
https://members.canada.com/benefits.aspx for more
information.
Peter I. MacNeil
Lieutenant (N)
Fleet Navigating Officer Course
Serial 0601
NOTC VENTURE
"There can be only one!"
