On 8 August at 0545 ZT, morning stars were observed, and the vessel's position was determined to be LAT 26°16.0' S, LONG 94°16.0'E. Your vessel is steaming at 20.0 knots on a course of 346°T. A sextant observation of the Sun's lower limb is made at 0905 ZT. The chronometer reads 03h 02m 52s, and the sextant altitude (hs) is 38°07.5'. The index error is 5.2' off the arc, and the chronometer error is 2m 17s slow. Your height of eye on the bridge is 72 feet (22.0 meters). What is the observed altitude (Ho) and azimuth (Zn) of this sight using the assumed position?

Question

On 8 August at 0545 ZT, morning stars were observed, and the vessel's position was determined to be LAT 26&deg;16.0' S, LONG 94&deg;16.0'E. Your vessel is steaming at 20.0 knots on a course of 346&deg;T. A sextant observation of the Sun's lower limb is made at 0905 ZT. The chronometer reads 03h 02m 52s, and the sextant altitude (hs) is 38&deg;07.5'. The index error is 5.2' off the arc, and the chronometer error is 2m 17s slow. Your height of eye on the bridge is 72 feet (22.0 meters). What is the observed altitude (Ho) and azimuth (Zn) of this sight using the assumed position?

Accepted Answer

Option A: 38&deg;19.4', 048.4&deg;T. Sight reduction requires correcting the sextant altitude for index error, dip, and refraction to find Ho. Using the assumed position and the Nautical Almanac for 8 August, the intercept and azimuth are calculated. The resulting Ho of 38°19.4' and Zn of 048.4°T are derived via standard sight reduction tables.