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On a magnetic compass, the needle marked North points towards magnetic North, provided there is no ferrous metal nearby. Magnetic North is not the same as geographic North (North Pole). On a metal ship, the magnetic compass has to be adjusted (box the compass) to allow for the metal round the ship. By steering a compass course, allowing for drift caused by the wind and the ebbing and flooding of the tides, a ship should be able to reach a distance port, or at least be with in sight.

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6y ago

The magnetic compass is a simple device, that can give you the approximate directions.

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Q: Why magnetic compass is used by sailors and navigators to find the direction?
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What type of force did sailors use to help navigate the waters?

Navigators can use a magnetic compass to determine which way is North even when they can't see the North Star.


How did the magnetic compass change life in Europe?

A Magnetic Compass showed directions to many sailors who later discovered many things


How navigators and sailors used magnetic compass?

The Earth's magnetic field is what makes the common magnetic compass work. From its invention until the advent of newer technologies beginning around the turn of the 20th century, the magnetic compass, together with the sextant and the chronometer, constituted the primary tools of the navigator. Of course, the compass' primary role was to facilitate steering ships on the right heading under conditions where the Sun and stars could not be seen.


What device was used by sailors to determine direction?

The Compass-


How did the compass help sailors.?

A compass tells sailors which direction they are going in (North, South, East, or West). This helps the sailors not to get lost and to keep on track to their destination.


How did the European explorers use the compass?

European explorers used the compass as a navigational tool to determine their direction when traveling by sea. By utilizing the magnetic properties of the Earth, the compass helped sailors maintain their course and avoid getting lost during long voyages.


What is magnetic compass use for?

compass is an instrument containing a freely suspended magnetic element which displays the direction of the horizontal component of the Earth's magnetic field at the point of observation. The magnetic compass is an old Chinese invention, probaly first made in China during the Qin dynasty (221-206 B.C.). Chinese fortune tellers used lodestones (a mineral composed of an iron oxide which aligns itself in a north-south direction) to construct their fortune telling boards.


What is a compass north south east and west?

It is called a mariners compass, it is a instrument that shows the North, east, West and South, and is used by pilots and the sailors.


How did th compass help the European sailors navigate their ship?

it told them which direction they were going.