Latitude is not based on any celestial observation, but rather the geographical location - how far north or south the place is - with respect to the equatorial circle. You could say it is based on terrestrial observation, if you like.
The declination of a celestial object is the exact equivalent of latitude.
At 45 degrees north latitude, the north celestial pole appears 45 degrees above the northern horizon. At 45 degrees south latitude, the south celestial pole appears 45 degrees above the southern horizon.
The altitude at which the celestial equator intersects your local meridian is the complementof your latitude, i.e. the difference between your latitude and 90 degrees.On the equator: Your latitude is zero. (90 - 0) = 90. Celestial equator passes overhead.At the pole: Your latitude is 90. (90 - 90) = 0. Celestial equator coincides with the horizon.In New Orleans, Louisiana, or Durban, South Africa: Your latitude is 30. (90 - 30) = 60.Celestial equator intersects local meridian at 60 degrees above the horizon.
The angle between the celestial equator and your personal zenith is equal to the latitude of your location. (Whether it's north or south latitude doesn't matter, and neither does your longitude or the time of day or night where you are.)
There are several ways in which you can determine your latitude. 1. Use a GPS unit. It will read out your latitude, longitude and precise time. 2. Look on a map; most navigational and topographic maps are scaled in latitude and longitude. 3. Radio navigation beacons like LORAN or R_NAV can give you your latitude. 4. At night, and in the northern hemisphere north of about 15N, you can (weather permitting) take a celestial observation of the north star Polaris, and the sextant reading is, with a half-degree or so, your latitude.
The celestial coordinate system is exactly analogous to the terrestrial positioning system based on latitude and longitude. Terrestrial latitude ---> celestial 'declination'. Terrestrial longitude ---> celestial 'right ascension', where one 'hour' = 15 degrees.
The declination of a celestial object is the exact equivalent of latitude.
I don't think they have been renamed precisely; they probably were never called "longitude" and "latitude" in the first place! In fact, these terms refer to two slightly different co-ordinate systems. The first one is based on the "Ecliptic". The second one is based on the "Celestial Equator".
Celestial navigation.
When astronomers are working with geographic maps, they call latitude "latitude"and longitude "longitude".When they're working with celestial maps, they refer to the analogous celestial coordinatesas "Declination" and "Right Ascension".
At 45 degrees north latitude, the north celestial pole appears 45 degrees above the northern horizon. At 45 degrees south latitude, the south celestial pole appears 45 degrees above the southern horizon.
The altitude at which the celestial equator intersects your local meridian is the complementof your latitude, i.e. the difference between your latitude and 90 degrees.On the equator: Your latitude is zero. (90 - 0) = 90. Celestial equator passes overhead.At the pole: Your latitude is 90. (90 - 90) = 0. Celestial equator coincides with the horizon.In New Orleans, Louisiana, or Durban, South Africa: Your latitude is 30. (90 - 30) = 60.Celestial equator intersects local meridian at 60 degrees above the horizon.
The angle between the celestial equator and your personal zenith is equal to the latitude of your location. (Whether it's north or south latitude doesn't matter, and neither does your longitude or the time of day or night where you are.)
The Maya studied astronomy, calendrics, agriculture, and the movements of celestial bodies from observation. They built impressive observatories and used their knowledge to develop sophisticated calendars and accurately predict celestial events.
Any sky object within (your latitude) degrees of the north celestial pole.
The altitude of the celestial pole from the horizon actually tells you your latitude. So If I locate Polaris, the star that our earth's celestial pole points to and I see it's 40 degrees above the horizon to the north, I know that my latitude is 40 degrees north. Think about the extremes, if your on the equator looking for the celestial pole, you would see it on the northern horizon correct? (0 degrees) Now think of where the celestial pole would be pointing when on the north pole. You guessed it, straight up! (90 degrees)
At night in the northern hemisphere, measure the angle above the northern horizon of the star Polaris. The elevation of Polaris is, within three-quarters of a degree or so, your latitude. If you also have a watch and a copy of the Nautical Almanac, you can apply a simple correction to calculate your latitude to whatever accuracy you can read your sextant. Polaris isn't a particularly bright star, and a little mist at sea can prevent you from seeing it. A somewhat more useful observation is the "local apparent noon sight", measuring the altitude of the Sun and the exact time when the Sun is highest in the sky. This can give you an amazingly accurate one-observation "fix" of your position, and is the most common celestial observation. However, this does require an ACCURATE watch.