I took Frank's 19th Century Celestial Navigation class in April 2013 and really enjoyed it. Not only was the class interesting but my fellow classmates were too; a retired skipper of a ballistic missile sub, the son of the fellow who invented GPS, a teacher, a captain of a Panamax container ship and a fellow who crossed the Atlantic solo - twice!
The class was also a great resource for my teaching and my own research interests such as the visibility of celestial objects in the daytime (Jupiter and Venus) and the effects of astronomical refraction near the horizon. I hope to take more workshops with Frank.
Dr. Russell D. Sampson
Wickware Planetarium
Eastern Connecticut State University
ATLANTIC or PACIFIC session?
Workshops are scheduled as ATLANTIC or PACIFIC for the convenience of navigators nearer the Atlantic Ocean or nearer the Pacific Ocean.
This year ATL or ATLANTIC online sessions run from 10:00am to 4:00pm US Eastern time on Saturday and Sunday. This corresponds to 1500 - 2100 UT and may be convenient for those joining from longitudes ranging from about 30°E to 135°W. The choice is yours. If you follow a schedule with exotic hours, don't feel bound by the geographic name of the session!
This year PAC or PACIFIC online sessions run from 8:00pm to 11:45pm US Eastern time which is 5:00pm to 8:45pm US Pacific time (PDT). This corresponds to 0100-0445 UT (next calendar day) and may be convenient for those joining anywhere from longitude 60°W across all of North America, past the dateline (180° W) and as far into Asian longitudes as 120°E. NOTE: PAC sessions are scheduled for Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday evenings in US time zones which cross into the next calendar day by UT, as well as in longitudes further east in the Pacific and east Asia.
Find your longitude on the map. Are you in New Zealand or Australia or Japan? Then a PAC of PACIFIC session is right for you. Are you in Europe or eastern Brazil or the Canadian maritimes? Then an ATL or ATLANTIC session would be more convenient for you. Are you in New England or most of Canada or California? Then you might find either an ATLANTIC or a PACIFIC session convenient and feasible. And don't feel bound by geography. If you have an unusual schedule, choose the option that suits your hours.
If you're registered for an online workshop, you will be invited to attend hour-long sextant practical sessions in Rhode Island and Connecticut scheduled as weather and other conditions permit. These live, in-person sessions are included in your registration for online classes.
All workshops created and taught by Frank Reed.
Comments:
Dr. Russell D. Sampson wrote: 31👍
Jeffrey Rock wrote: 8👍
Lunar Distance and Age of Sail Classes:
Fascinating classes taught by a fascinating and capable instructor.
Lunars class is challenging and fun. Frank presents several different recipes for accomplishing lunars, one of which seems almost easy (kind of). Highly recommended for anyone interested in celestial navigation or nautical navigation history.
Jeffrey Rock
FAA Designated Pilot Examiner
Fascinating classes taught by a fascinating and capable instructor.
Lunars class is challenging and fun. Frank presents several different recipes for accomplishing lunars, one of which seems almost easy (kind of). Highly recommended for anyone interested in celestial navigation or nautical navigation history.
Jeffrey Rock
FAA Designated Pilot Examiner
Homer Smith wrote: 10👍
Over the past few years I have taken all of the Celestial Navigation courses taught by Frank Reed at ReedNavigation.com and I recently repeated Modern CN 1 & 2 just for the pure enjoyment that it brought to me.
My interest in CN started a few years ago as I puzzled over how the stars could be used to find one’s position on the earth. I tried to learn CN through self-study, but I couldn’t make the subject matter interesting and realized that this was not the correct approach. You need a skilled instructor that can guide you through the learning process, and that’s what Frank Reed provides.
In a relatively short period of time I had a solid grounding in CN. Frank has unmatched knowledge of CN. His classes are fun, interesting, and sprinkled with historical context and include as much or as little math as you desire. His visual aids were very helpful and the time spent on discussing how to properly use a sextant to take a sight was beneficial. You will learn how to find stars in the night sky by which to navigate. The downloaded course guide is very concise and includes tables that are valid for 5 years into the future.
You don’t need to be at sea to do CN. I live inland and learned in the class how to do land-based navigation with a sextant, either with a large or small body of water to provide a true horizon, or with no water horizon at all.
Going back 250 years, I understand how CN was practiced through the ages, up to the present time with calculator, equations and tables. Thanks to Frank, I take great satisfaction in knowing that I possess a skill that very few people have. I highly recommend his courses.
Homer R. Smith M.D.
My interest in CN started a few years ago as I puzzled over how the stars could be used to find one’s position on the earth. I tried to learn CN through self-study, but I couldn’t make the subject matter interesting and realized that this was not the correct approach. You need a skilled instructor that can guide you through the learning process, and that’s what Frank Reed provides.
In a relatively short period of time I had a solid grounding in CN. Frank has unmatched knowledge of CN. His classes are fun, interesting, and sprinkled with historical context and include as much or as little math as you desire. His visual aids were very helpful and the time spent on discussing how to properly use a sextant to take a sight was beneficial. You will learn how to find stars in the night sky by which to navigate. The downloaded course guide is very concise and includes tables that are valid for 5 years into the future.
You don’t need to be at sea to do CN. I live inland and learned in the class how to do land-based navigation with a sextant, either with a large or small body of water to provide a true horizon, or with no water horizon at all.
Going back 250 years, I understand how CN was practiced through the ages, up to the present time with calculator, equations and tables. Thanks to Frank, I take great satisfaction in knowing that I possess a skill that very few people have. I highly recommend his courses.
Homer R. Smith M.D.
