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CELESTIAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA:
Everyone is invited to join us four times a year to observe
and identify the celestial bodies, measure their altitudes
by sextant, reduce them and calculate our exact position
on earth. You are encouraged to bring your sextant or
you may use the ones we will bring to the site. We will
meet one hour before sunset in order to toast to the Green
Flash. Captain Morgan's Rum is the liquid of choice. Be
sure to set up your starfinder if possible and complete
partial reductions of the bodies of choice. The Admiral's
reduction forms along with a list of the bodies of choice
will be available at the school the week before. Bring
folding tables and beach chairs along with any treats
for the crew.
The Society meets four times a year when the Sun crosses
the equator and also when it reaches the maximum declination
North or South. Due to my being in Tulsa this time we
have moved the next meeting to April.
The next meeting will take place at Dockwieller Beach
in Playa Del Rey California on the 6th of April.
Be sure to call the CSA office by 1 April, so we know
how many to plan on.
This is an evening of practicing Celestial Navigation.
It is not an organized instructional class however everyone
is invited to observe the event and find out the answer
to "life, the universe and everything",
along with where they are.
NEXT CELESTIAL CLASS at UCLA
By the by, the next Celestial Class will take place at
CSA. It will be May 25, 26 & 27, 2007
and will run Friday nite, Saturday and Sunday for three
sessons. This course will use Paul's new Basic Celestial
Navigation book. See youall there.
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WHY SHOULD
YOU BE THINKING ABOUT CELESTIAL NAVIGATION
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Bush Prepares for Possible GPS Shutdown
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By TED BRIDIS, AP Technology Writer
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WASHINGTON - President Bush has ordered plans for
temporarily disabling the U.S. network of global
positioning satellites during a national crisis
to prevent terrorists from using the navigational
technology, the White House said Wednesday.
Any shutdown of the network inside the United
States would come under only the most remarkable
circumstances, said a Bush administration official
who spoke to a small group of reporters at the White
House on condition of anonymity.
The GPS system is vital to commercial aviation
and marine shipping.
The president also instructed the Defense Department
to develop plans to disable, in certain areas, an
enemy's access to the U.S. navigational satellites
and to similar systems operated by others. The European
Union is developing a $4.8 billion program, called
Galileo.
The military increasingly uses GPS technology
to move troops across large areas and direct bombs
and missiles. Any government-ordered shutdown or
jamming of the GPS satellites would be done in ways
to limit disruptions to navigation and related systems
outside the affected area, the White House said.
"This is not something you would do lightly,"
said James A. Lewis, director of technology policy
for the Washington-based Center for Strategic and
International Studies. "It's clearly a big
deal. You have to give them credit for being so
open about what they're going to do."
President Clinton abandoned the practice in May
2000 of deliberately degrading the accuracy of civilian
navigation signals, a technique known as "selective
availability."
The White House said it will not reinstate that
practice, but said the president could decide to
disable parts of the network for national security
purposes.
The directives to the Defense Department and the
Homeland Security Department were part of a space
policy that Bush signed this month. It designates
the GPS network as a critical infrastructure for
the U.S. government. Part of the new policy is classified;
other parts were disclosed Wednesday.
The White House said the policies were aimed at
improving the stability and performance of the U.S.
navigation system, which Bush pledged will continue
to be made available for free.
The U.S. network is comprised of more than two
dozen satellites that act as beacons, sending location-specific
radio signals that are recognized by devices popular
with motorists, hikers, pilots and sailors.
Bush also said the government will make the network
signals more resistant to deliberate or inadvertent
jamming.
Office of Science & Technology Policy: www.ostp.gov
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DEEP IMPACT:
The Deep Impact program was launched on January
12, 2005. A Delta II rocket was used to place the
spacecraft into a heliocentric orbit. On July 4th
the rocket rendezvoused with comet 9P/Tempel. The
rocket then impacted the comet forming a crater
25 meters deep and 100 meters wide. Photos from
the parent spacecraft were returned to earth showing
the impact and dust. These photos illustrating the
United States had hit a comet with a rocket launched
from earth were well circulated by the Press. It
is certainly possible that the shot had more than
scientific significance. It certainly showed the
world we had the ability to strike a fast moving
object in deep space.
The European nations have formed a group termed
Galeao which are launching their own statalites
which will be used for a GPS system on another frequency.
Our government requested both permission to join
the group and the ability to turn off the system
in case of a crisis. We were denied permission to
do either. China has now destroyed one of their
own satallites in space followed by many reprisalls
from our government.
It is really evident that sailors placing all their
faith in the GPS while crossing vast oceans are
at risk. You should at least develope basic celestial
navigation skills.
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I was teaching a CSA 5 course over the holidays
and noted that repeatedly the GPS system was dropping
the signal. I strongly suspect that this is related to
the above policy. When this happens most GPS units will
start Dead Reckoning.
Be careful as you may find yourself not where
the GPS indicates!!!!
AS THE BOY SCOUTS SAY
BE PREPARED Take a Celestial Navigation class
or at least read my new book.
I have written a new Basic Celestial Navigation
book for the ASA. This one covers theory, Latitude and
Longitude at Noon, Latitude by Polaris and some practice
problems. This book and an inexpensive Sextant save you
the embarsement of being lost at sea when your fifth and
final GPS fails you half way to Hawaii.
USNA REUNION
It was Reunion time at the Naval Academy, Annapolis thus
Jeanne and I went
back to my homeland. We really enjoyed the reunion, particularly
with my
buds from the 2nd company.
It was especially nice seeing my two roommates of many
years ago.
I am certainly glad I was a midshipman when Crab Town
was quaint.
When we flew into Washington International airport, an
individual later
discovered to be a teacher of Midshipman was arrested
trying to board the
flight while in possession of a ruler, a protractor, a
T square, a slide rule, a
calculator and a Sextant.
At the morning press conference , the Attorney General
said he
believed the man was a member of the notorious al-gebra
movement. He was
being charged by the FBI with carrying weapons of math
instruction.
"Al-gebra is a fearsome cult," They desire
average solutions by means and
extremes, and sometimes go off on tangents in a
search of absolute value. They use secret code names like
"x" and "y"
and refer to themselves as "unknowns," but we
have determined they
belong to a common denominator of the axis of medieval
with coordinates
in every country.
"As the Greek philanderer Isosceles used to say,
there are 3 sides to
every triangle."
When asked to comment on the arrest, the President said,
"If God had
wanted us to have better weapons of math instruction,
he would have
given us more fingers and toes.
"I am gratified that our government has given us
a sine that it is
intent on protracting us from these math-dogs who are
willing to
disintegrate us with calculus disregard. Murky statisticians
love to
inflict plane on every sphere of influence," the
President said, adding:
"Under the circumferences, we must differentiate
their root, make our
point, and draw the line." ;the President warned,
"These weapons of math
instruction have the potential to decimal everything in
their math on a
scalene never before seen unless we become exponents of
a Higher Power
and begin to factor-in random facts of vertex."
Attorney General said, "As our Great Leader would
say, read my
ellipse. Here is one principle he is uncertainty of: though
they
continue to multiply, their days are numbered as the hypotenuse
tightens
around their necks
A good year to you all,
The Admiral
SKY
Ahoy Mates,
I plan my long journeys around the moon. I generally
limit our longer trips to a couple of thousand miles and
thus two weeks of travel. My perfect night at sea is when
the moon is rising as the Sun slides beneath the waves
and the moon setting close to sunrise. It also is effective
if the moon is fairly full during the last third of the
trip. In this way, we can shoot celestial bodies (measure
the altitude of the bodies above the horizon) by the light
of the moon. I have never read or heard of anyone else
doing this, however, we are able to get excellent celestial
fixes at night from the moon's horizon while offshore.
If you can forecast the eclipse of the sun and moon it
is also many times possible to win special treatment from
the natives in the remote Pacific Islands. I have even
done this with people from Arkansas. So keep an eye to
the sky.
FIRE IN THE BILGES!!!!!!!!!!
We are an approved USCG Training and Exam Center, thus
I read with interest about a Water Witch bilge pump switch
used on USCG inspected vessels.
Bilge pump switches are always in need on both large
and small vessels. Being a Chief Engineer and graduate
from the Naval Academy I am embarrassed to tell you that
I had an electrical fire in the bilges of my personal
40 foot sail boat which was wired as suggested in the
pump instructions. Due to an electrically leaking switch
in the bilge 2000 miles from land, we had a few tense
moments. The switch should merely close the ground on
the pump, thus turning it on. The pump should never be
mounted in the bilge. The worse case scenario would than
be, that the pump remains running, rather than have an
incandescent positive wire in the salt water bilge which
becomes grounded through the water to the keel .A timer
should be on the pump also, such that the pump runs an
additional 2 to 3 minutes after evacuation to remove water
from the down side of the pump pick up hoses.
BOAT SINKING FROM THE BILGE PUMP ????
Another serious condition a former student experienced,
resulted from the mounting of a cheap centrifugal bilge
pump and switch in the bilge of a 40 foot sail boat before
setting off for Hawaii. This trip will generally find
the vessel on a hard rail down starboard tack for the
first three days out of Los Angeles until the wind clocks
aft. Only a truly positive displacement pump that has
a very high lift pressure should be used. Otherwise there
is more water pressure against the pump than the pump
can develop to push the water out of the bilge. It is
so difficult to imagine that a bilge pump could be sinking
the vessel, they did not suspect this as the culprit.
After two days rail down on a starboard tack and taking
on bilge water they reversed course for LA onto a port
tack and the bilge pump slowly evacuated the water. When
they would turn back toward Hawaii, the vessel would start
taking on water again. After doing this three times they
sent me an e-mail by radio on Sailmail to see if I had
any thoughts on the matter. I asked them to check the
the pump and see if it was a centrifugal pump. Closing
the thru hull valve on the pump they reversed course for
Hawaii and sent flowers and thanks. This is another reason
we often survey new vessels and vessels bound for long
ocean voyages. West Marine stocks a proper positive displacement
diaphragm pump which is legal for installation in T- Boats.
This is a 10.8 gpm pump model number 289298 which is well
worth the $450. Be sure to also install a strainer.
KNOTS:
There is an excellent web site for practicing knot tying
on the web. Click
and enjoy.
SIZE OF THE OCEAN:
During our last Offshore class down to Cabo San Lucas
we had a young Doctor from Texas aboard. When we were
well offshore, surfing down the waves aboard Zeus he looked
out across the vast span of ocean and commented that the
ocean was larger than anything he had ever seen in Texas.
Jeanne replied that he was really only looking at the
top of it!
When the weather became stronger and a couple of people
were commenting about how far we were from land the Admiral
commented not to worry as we were really never more than
five miles from land, as he pointed straight down.
Ellen MacArthur broke the world record by taking 71 days
to sail around the world solo in her hi-tech £1.3m
trimaran. Congrats young lady and a very well done.
She has sailed around again in even less time.
ADVANCED SAIL TRIM by the Admiral
The primary considerations to controlling sail power
are sail trim, shape and twist. Over the years we have
accepted the fact that when the winds over the water (true)
are lower velocity (light) it is best to make the sails
fuller (power up) and in strong winds it is best to make
them flat (power down).
What is not so clear is the "why, when and how".
A sailboat can be compared to a crop dusting aircraft
flying at a slow speed. This aircraft has a very thick
wing in order to produced sufficient lift at lower air
speeds. High performance jets have very thin and adjustable
wings since at high air speed the thin airfoil will develop
sufficient lift to maintain flight.
Sails are generally cut for the area and the conditions
in which the vessel will sail.
If a vessel is to be sailed in an area known for lighter
wind conditions the sails will be cut with more fullness
similar to the wing of the crop duster aircraft.
The sails are cut flatter for areas such as San Francisco
Bay, which is noted for their strong afternoon breezes.
The method of obtaining these shapes is by sewing elliptical
sections of sails together into a total triangular sail
shape. In the world of high tech race boats the sails
are formed over a bent surface into the desired shape
and then bonded.
When I was sailing at the Naval Academy, we had many
sets of sails on our Annapolis 44s, which ranged from
the baggies to the flats, termed 1, 2, 3, and 4. The #
1 was the fullest and thinnest sail and the # 4 was the
flat cut thick sail.
Now with progressive income tax and the cost of sails,
it is necessary to use more all-purpose sails and bendy
mast and booms. By stretching the sail it is possible
to obtain the desired shape for the various wind and sea
conditions.
In general the draft (greatest deflection) is about 50%
aft of the luff in both the main and jib.
If the halyard tension is too great the draft tends to
move forward of the designed location.
As the wind velocity increases the sail naturally stretches
and the draft tends to move aft of the designed shape
which causes a degradation in the performance of the sail
and a loss of speed.
THE JIB:
Shaping the jib can be achieved by adjustment of the halyard
tension, jib downhaul if available, and adjustment of
the jib fairlead to obtain the proper twist.
By tightening the jib halyard or downhaul the draft may
be moved forward and easing them the draft will move aft.
With horizontal stripes on a sail, the shape is easier
to evaluate from the deck.
By moving the jib fairlead fore and aft along the deck,
twist may be reduced or added to the sail. The twist in
the jib and main should be similar.
At the top of the mast the true wind velocity is greater
and the apparent wind is more in line with the true wind.
Lower on the mast the true wind is less and the apparent
wind is from more forward.
Thus the sails should have a slight decrease in twist
from top to bottom. By placing telltales on the sails
from top to bottom it is relatively easy to adjust the
jib fairlead until all the telltales flow horizontal along
the entire height of the sail luff.
THE MAINSAIL:
The mainsail shape is obtained by adjustment of the halyard,
downhaul, cunningham, outhaul, boom vang, mast bend and
mainsheet tension.
As a sailor drives the boat to windward in a breeze it
is oft times noted that the main sheet is over trimmed
and the outhaul is loose causing the battens to angle
to windward. This induced drag at the tight leach is very
slow and causes excessive healing in a breeze.
In strong winds when sailing to windward tighten the main
halyard, downhaul or Cunningham, and clew outhaul to move
the sail draft into the designed position. A fractional
rig mast may be bent forward in the middle to flatten
(de-power) the mainsail. The vang can be tightened for
leach tension and reduction of twist if necessary and
the traveler can be eased to leeward particularly in the
gusts. As the vessel is sailed off the wind the boom moves
out over the water. The traveler then becomes less effective
for controlling sail twist and the boom vang becomes more
effective.
TILLER:
Most importantly remember the tiller is not only used
to steer, it is how the boat communicates with the driver
and visa versa.
When driving to windward in a breeze, listen carefully
to what the boat is telling you. If the tiller is pulling
strong to the leeward side, the boat is attempting to
climb to windward. Move the crew to windward, ease the
traveler, ease the mainsheet, tighten the clew outhaul
and possibly harden the jib sheet if that sail is not
driving.
When sailing in light airs and flat water, move the
crew to leeward for heel, bring up the traveler to sail
closer to the wind, ease the sheets, clew outhaul, halyards,
downhauls, cunningham, and vang to power up the sails
into a fuller shape.
HORIZONAL SAIL STRIPES:
In the late 60ies I attempted to place stripes on the
sails, first by sewing black stripes on either side of
the sail. This caused wrinkles in the sail due to the
uneven stretch of the sailcloth. I then used a black marker
pin, which bled down the sail. This was not cool. Today
with the permanent markers such as "marks a lot"
this is a more acceptable method to obtain horizontal
sail stripes. Today you can simply ask your sail maker
for stripes when they are ordered.
In general beginning sailors tend to over trim the sails.
My favorite expression when racing with student crews;
"When in doubt let them out!"
NEW BASIC CELESTIAL NAVIGATION BOOK
Ahoy I have just completed our first
Basic Celestial Navigation book. It is available at the
school now. This is the first full color simple to understand
book on basic celestial navigation. At the end of the
book is a navigational trip offshore to be calculated
by the reader. The ASA is adding the book to their offerings
and I am also preparing an Online course for UCLA.
As the scouts say: Be prepared!
No one can shut down our beautiful sun, stars and planets.
We are presently training U.S. COAST
GUARD licensed Mariners for Ocean Passages by Celestial
Navigation. This is a USCG requirement for licensed mariners.
Paul
COMMENTS:
Please send your comments or questions to the Admiral
at rufus@UCLA.edu.
Admiral Miller
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