On 17 May at 0501 zone time, morning stars were observed, and the vessel's position was determined to be LAT 22°16.0'S, LONG 103°46.0'W. Your vessel is steaming at 24.0 knots on a course of 301°T. A sextant observation of the Sun's lower limb is made at 0845 zone time. The chronometer reads 03h 43m 32s, and the sextant altitude is 28°24.7'. The index error is 1.5' off the arc, and the chronometer error is 02m 02s slow. Your height of eye on the bridge is 85.5 feet. What is the azimuth (Zn) of this sight using the assumed position?

Question

Accepted Answer

Option C: 052.5°T. Calculate the Sun's LHA using the corrected GMT and the vessel's longitude. Apply the spherical trigonometry formula for azimuth: tan(Zn) = sin(LHA) / (cos(Lat)tan(Dec) - sin(Lat)cos(LHA)). Using the assumed position and the Sun's declination from the Nautical Almanac, the calculated azimuth is 052.5°T.