Using Basic Celestial Navigation Techniques to Your Advantage
You’re in the wilderness without a GPS, compass or map. You have no idea where you are or what direction you are facing. What do you do? Well, you can wait for the sun to appear and move throughout the day in order to get a sense of east and west, or you can utilize one of the simple tricks described below. Look at the following time-tested techniques and see how easy it is to orient yourself when you don’t have any tools to help.
Cardinal Directions
One of the easiest ways to determine the cardinal directions (north, south, east and west) is with a couple of sticks and the sun. Take a stick and place it firmly in the ground so it is standing straight up. You will see it cast a shadow. Place another stick, pointing straight up at the edge of this shadow. Wait a couple of hours and the shadow will move.
Take another stick and place it at the edge of that shadow as well. Draw an imaginary (or real) line that cuts the space between the two sticks in half. This is your east/west line. Draw another line perpendicular to this one and you now have your north/south line. You will know west from the movement of the shadow.
Determining Latitude
If you are in the northern hemisphere, which most of us will be during any foreseeable emergency, the best way to determine latitude is by finding the north star. The north star, or Polaris would be directly overhead if you were in the north pole. It appears lower in the sky as you move south. Consequently, if you are at the equator, or near the tropics, it would appear at or below an imaginary line that rests 1/3 the way up from the horizon. It keeps moving up as you move further north.
Finding Polaris is easy. On a clear night, locate the big dipper. The imaginary line that connects the outer edge of the dipper can be extended at the same angle upward. Keep going until it intersects a bright star. This is Polaris, and it also happens to be the end of the handle of the little dipper.
All you need to do is guess the degrees that represent the space between the horizon and the north star. One way to do this is to extend your thumb and pinky finger. This space is approximately 20 degrees. Each finger is approximately 2 degrees, and the width of your hand, at the bottom knuckles is around 10 degrees. Place your hand in the sky and measure the space between the horizon and north star.
Determining Longitude
You need to do some basic math and have familiarity with time zones in order to correctly determine longitude with this trick. The sun moves at 15 degrees per hour in the sky. What you want to do is place a stick in the ground in the late morning. When the stick stops casting its shadow, the sun is at its zenith, or highest point in the sky. Note the time.
Next, you want to figure out how many time zones are west or east of GMT or ZULU time. This is the zero point in which all time zones originate, and each zone is one hour apart, not accounting for daylight savings. If you are east of GMT, then you add an hour. If you’re west of GMT, you subtract. For example, New York is -5 hours whereas Tokyo is +9 hours in the summertime. Knowing your time zone in relation to GMT is crucial. Always be aware of this no matter where you are.
All you need to do is multiply the number of time zones you are away from GMT by 15. For example, you’re in Chicago. You are GMT -6. Multiply by 15 and you get 90. Chicago is really at 87 degrees, but we’re pretty close, and the variation is due to the position of your location within a certain time zone. In any case, you can get a general sense of your longitude by using these calculations once the sun is at its zenith.
Using these simple techniques will help you to orient yourself without any tools whatsoever. The only limitation is on cloudy days when the sun doesn’t cast its shadow or you can’t see stars. Try these tricks for yourself and see how accurate they really are, even if they are not as precise as a GPS or compass. With some basic knowledge of geography, you can get in the ballpark of your position anywhere in the northern hemisphere. This will help you to get your bearings and start moving in a direction that will lead you to civilization faster than you may think.
