Aphelion.

Point of the orbit when the earth is furthest away from the Sun (early July)
Point of the orbit when the earth is furthest away from the Sun (early July)

Афелий или апогелий — наиболее удаленная от Солнца точка орбиты планеты или иного
небесного тела Солнечной системы, а также расстояние от этой точки до Солнца

Ecliptic.
Apparent path of the Sun around the Earth.
Эклиптика — большой круг небесной сферы, по которому происходит видимое с Земли годичное
движение Солнца относительно звезд.
Соответственно плоскость эклиптики — это плоскость обращения Земли вокруг Солнца.

Equinoxes. When the Sun crosses the plane of the Equinoctial, twice a year March and
September.
Равноденствие — астрономическое явление, когда центр Солнца в своем видимом движении по
эклиптике пересекает небесный экватор.

Obliquity of the Ecliptic.

An angle of 23.5°. The angle between the plane of the Ecliptic and the plane of the Equinoctial
Наклон эклиптики.
Угол 23,5°. Угол между плоскостью Эклиптики и плоскостью равноденствия.

Perihelion. Point of the orbit when the earth is closest to the Sun. (Early January)
Перигелий. Точка орбиты, когда земля находится ближе всего к Солнцу. (Начало января)

Plane of the Ecliptic. The imaginary plane containing the Earth's orbit around the Sun
Plane of the Equinoctial. The plane of the equator extended into space.
Плоскость равноденствия. Плоскость экватора простиралась в пространство.

Solstice. Occur twice a year, when the Sun reaches its northernmost and southernmost

Latitude

Солнцестояние. Происходят два раза в год, когда Солнце достигает своей самой северной и самой
южной широты.

The Shape of the Earth

it is flattened slightly at the
poles - its shape being described in simple terms as an Ellipsoid or an Oblate Spheroid.
Экваториальный радиус Земли (большая полуось) - 3444 морских мили (NM)
6378 километров (КМ),
Полярный радиус (малая полуось) - 3433 морских мили
6357 километров (КМ),

Таким образом
, экваториальный радиус примерно на 11 NM (21 км) больше его полярного радиуса, и эта разница
составляет примерно 1/300-ю (на самом деле ближе к 1/298-й) часть экваториального диаметра.
Эта эллиптичность, составляющая 1 часть из 300, также может быть выражена в виде десятичной
дроби (.003) или процента (0,3%).

Cardinal Directions
East and West are two of the Cardinal directions the others being, North (N) and South (S).

Intercardinal Directions
North-East, South-East, South-West and North-West are known
as the inter-cardinal directions or quadrantal directions.

Great Circle.
Круг на поверхности Земли, центр и радиус которого совпадают с центром и радиусом самой
Земли, называется Большим кругом.
Small Circles.
Круг на поверхности Земли, центр и радиус которого не совпадают с центром и радиусом Земли.

Equator.
The Equator lies in an East-West direction and divides the earth into two equal
hemispheres, i.e. the Northern and Southern hemispheres. The plane of the equator sits
perpendicular to the spin axis and is also a Great Circle.
Экватор проходит в направлении Восток-Запад и делит землю на два равных
полушария, то есть Северное и Южное полушария. Плоскость экватора расположена
перпендикулярно оси вращения и также представляет собой Большой круг.

Parallels of Latitude. Parallels of Latitude lie in an east/west direction and are used to
define position north/south of the equator.
The equator is a parallel of latitude (0° Latitude) and the highest latitude is 90° N/S. Parallels of latitude
are examples of Small Circles

Meridians. Meridians are lines joining the poles. Each meridian has its own anti-meridian
(180° from the meridian). Meridians are aligned in a North-South direction. As will be seen
Меридианы - это линии, соединяющие полюса. У каждого меридиана есть свой собственный
антимеридиан (180° от меридиана). Меридианы выровнены в направлении Север-Юг.

Меридиан Prime Meridian or the 000°и его антимеридиан 180°E/W образуют большой круг.

Latitude
Latitude is defined as the angular distance (degrees, minutes) from the equator to a point,
measured North or South along the meridian through that point. It is annotated N or S according
to whether the point lies North or South of the Equator. In the figure point A is 60° North of the
Equator.
Longitude

The longitude of any point is the shorter angular distance along the Equator between the
Greenwich Meridian (000° E/W) and the meridian through the point. It is annotated E or W
according to whether the point lies East or West of the Greenwich Meridian. In the figure point P
is 40° East of the Greenwich meridian. The latitude and longitude of point A is therefore, 60°N,
40°E. Conventionally the group of figures representing Latitude is always written first, followed
by the figures expressing Longitude.
Definitions of Direction

Bearing. The direction of a point/object measured to/from another point/object.

Heading. Direction in which the nose (fore/aft axis) of an aircraft is pointing.

Magnetic Direction. Is the horizontal direction indicated by a freely suspended magnet

influenced only by the Earth’s magnetic field.

Reciprocal. Opposite direction (+/- 180°) to original direction.

Relative Bearing. Bearings referenced to the nose of an aircraft.

Rhumb Line. A line that cuts all meridians at the same angle, line of constant direction.

Track (or Course). The actual path of an aircraft over the earth.

True Direction. When the North datum is the direction of the Geographical North pole.
Variation. Is the angle between True North and Magnetic North and is measured in
degrees East or West from True North.

Measurement of Direction

By convention direction is measured clockwise from the North datum to the track line (on a chart), that is
to be measured.
North is written as 000° or 360°, East as 090°; South as 180° and West as 270°. The quadrantal
directions are 045°, 135°, 225° and 315°.

Nautical Mile. The length of a great circle arc on the surface of the earth, subtending an
angle of one minute at the centre of the earth.
ICAO Nautical Mile. A distance of 1852 m
Standard Nautical mile. A distance of 6080 ft. (As used in official exams)
Statute Mile. It is a distance of 1760 yards confirmed by statute in the reign of Queen
Elizabeth I.
Kilometre. The SI measurement of distance equal to 1/10 000 of the distance from the
equator to the poles.

The circumference of the earth may be stated as 360 degrees of arc which when converted to
nautical miles is
360 x 60 NM or 21 600 NM.
1 minute = 1NM , 1 gradus = 60 NM

The polar circumference may also be expressed as 10 000km x 4 = 40 000km.

40 000 km x 1000 m =40000000 / 1852 = 21 598 NM

Knowing the formula for the circumference of a circle, the diameter and radius may also be
calculated.

If we regard the earth as a perfect sphere:

 the diameter is approximately a distance of 12 733 km (6875 NM)
 the radius is 6366 km (3438 NM).
1.6.4 Magnetic Variation
The angular difference between the direction of True North and Magnetic North at any point on
earth is called magnetic variation. Variation is the angle between True North and Magnetic
North and is measured in degrees East (+) or West (-) from True North. The + or - signs indicate
how variation is applied to magnetic direction to convert to true direction. If the angle between
true and magnetic north is known at any given point, local variation, it is possible to convert
magnetic direction to true direction and vice versa. The maximum variation possible is 180°,
when you are directly between the geographical North Pole and the magnetic north pole. A
method of remembering the relationship between true and magnetic direction is:

Variation West, Magnetic Best

Variation East, Magnetic Least

“Best” refers to direction referenced to the 360° navigation direction circle and means that
magnetic direction is more than the equivalent true direction. “Least” means that magnetic
direction is less than equivalent true direction. In Figure 2-5, variation is 12°W, and magnetic
direction is 065° (M). With variation west magnetic direction is BEST or bigger therefore true
direction will be magnetic minus variation.

In navigation terms, with reference to direction, 010° is a greater direction/number than e.g.
355°, and vice versa. Figure 2-6 Variation is 15°W therefore, Magnetic is “BEST”. Call the track
angle from Magnetic datum to the red line 010°M. The same red line has a TRUE direction of
355°T.

Note. The track line has 2 directions; a magnetic and a true but is the same track line. The
position of the 2 direction datums with respect to the track line.

When a freely suspended magnetic needle (compass) is influenced only by the earth's magnetic
field, the direction it takes up is magnetic north. If such a needle is placed in an aircraft, it is
subject to a number of additional magnetic fields created by various electrical circuits and
magnetised pieces of metal within the aircraft. As a consequence, the north seeking end of the
needle deviates from the direction of magnetic north and indicates a direction known as
compass north.
The angular difference between magnetic north and compass north for a particular compass on
a particular heading is called deviation. Compass deviation is measured in degrees and is
named East (+) or West (-) according to whether the North-seeking end of the compass needle
points to the East or West respectively of magnetic north. The algebraic sign given to deviation
indicates how it is to be applied to compass direction to convert to magnetic direction. As with
variation, a simple rhyme serves as a reminder of the relationship between compass and
magnetic direction:
Direction 063°(C)
Deviation 2°E (or +2°)

Find Magnetic direction

Deviation East, Compass Least

Mag direction = Compass direction + Deviation
Magnetic Direction = 063°(C) +2° = 065°(M)

Compass deviation is not a constant value for a given compass; it varies with the heading of the
aircraft and position of the compass in an aircraft. The compass deviation experienced by two
different compasses is unlikely to be the same under identical conditions. Regulations require
that all magnetic compasses have a statement of compass deviation, usually in the form of a
card as shown below.
We have seen that True direction is related to Magnetic direction by variation, whilst Magnetic
direction is related to Compass direction by deviation. So, providing that variation and deviation
are known, it is possible to calculate direction relative to any of the datums if we know the
direction relative to one. This relationship is expressed by:

Example 2.2 - Figure 2-10

Relative Bearings (°R) are referenced to the nose of an aircraft and can be resolved into True or
Magnetic bearings simply by adding the heading, True or Magnetic, to the relative bearing. If the
result is more than 360°, subtract 360°.
A reciprocal is an opposite direction, which is ±180° to or from the original direction. An aircraft
reported by ATC that is going reciprocal, is going in the opposite direction to you. Or the
reciprocal runway is the same runway but used in the opposite direction.

Example 2.5

Reciprocal of 020° = 020 + 180 = 200° (add 180° if the original direction is 179° or less).

Example 2.6

Reciprocal of 333° = 333 – 180 = 153° (subtract 180° if original direction is 180° or more).
If adding or subtracting 180 proves too difficult, try handy methods.

Adding 180: Add 200 and then subtract 20.

Subtracting 180: Subtract 200 and then add 20

Direction is measured in degrees from the datum in a clockwise direction. The maximum
direction is 360° which is equal to 000°. All directions are quoted in 3 figure groups followed by
the abbreviation for the selected datum. Headings may be referenced to True, Magnetic, or
Compass datums, whilst track and bearing are normally measured with reference to either the
True or Magnetic datums.

1. The meridians of the earth define:

a. Grid north
b. True north
c. Magnetic north
d. Compass north
2. A magnetic compass that is free of error is aligned with:
a. True north
b. the local magnetic meridian
c. Magnetic north
d. Grid north

3. Magnetic materials that are located close to the compass may affect:
a. drift
b. variation
c. deviation
d. the relative bearing

4. To know the likely error in the compass in flight on a steady heading it is necessary to
consult the:
a. deviation card
b. isogonals
c. tech.log
d. the met. Forecast
5. The term “secular change” is used to describe:
a. the angle between heading and track
b. change in deviation with change of latitude
c. slow change in magnetic variation
d. a change in deviation because of magnetic materials in the aircraft.

6. Relative bearings from an aircraft are measured from:

a. the nose of the aircraft
b. true north
c. magnetic north
d. compass north

7. A relative bearing of 045° is measured to an island while the aircraft is heading 345°M.
What is the magnetic bearing to the island?
a. 300°+
b. 165°
c. 045°
d. 030°

8. Given compass heading 313°, deviation +2° (2°E), variation 10° W, what is the
magnetic heading?
a. 315°
b. 325°
c. 311°
d. 305°

9. An island has a relative bearing from the aircraft of 125°. The aircraft is heading 040°M
and variation is 18°E. What is the true bearing of the aircraft from the island?
a. 183°T
b. 147°T
c. 003°T
d. 327°T

10. If variation is 27°W, then:

a. Compass north lies to the east of magnetic north.
b. True north lies to the west of magnetic north.
c. Magnetic north lies to the east of true north.
d. True north lies to the east of magnetic north.