To answer the question with any real accuracy, you would also need to know the precise TIME, in GMT, of local apparent noon, because on November 17 each year, the Sun is apparently moving to the south at 0.6 minutes per hour. You will need a copy of the Nautical Alamanac, in order to look up the declination of the Sun at each hour. The link to the online Nautical Almanac is below.
If you observe the Sun at an elevation of 44 degrees at local apparent noon, then your latitude is 90 minus your sextant reading minus your south declination or plus your north declination. At noon GMT on November 17, 2011, the Sun is at 18 degrees, 57.7 minutes south declination. I'll round it off to 19 degrees, since neither the time nor the elevation in this question is all that precise anyway.
So, 90 - 44 is 46 degrees, minus 19 equals your latitude of 27 degrees north.
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.
If your latitude is 39 degrees north, then the north celestial poleis 39 degrees above your northern horizon.If your latitude is 39 degrees south, then the north celestial poleis 39 degrees below your northern horizon.
The observer must be 15.5 degrees south of the Arctic circle, so 51.1 degrees north approximately.
The angle between the horizon and the north star is roughly equal to the observer's North latitude ... always within about 2/3 of a degree. This only works for locations north of the equator. The north star isn't visible at all from places south of the equator.
The angle of Polaris above the northern horizon is very nearly equal to your north latitude, within about 1/3 of a degree. So it's over your head when you stand at the north pole, it sits nominally on your north horizon when you stand anywhere on the equator, and if you're south of the equator, you can never see it at all.
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.
If your latitude is 39 degrees north, then the north celestial poleis 39 degrees above your northern horizon.If your latitude is 39 degrees south, then the north celestial poleis 39 degrees below your northern horizon.
The observer must be 15.5 degrees south of the Arctic circle, so 51.1 degrees north approximately.
The angle between the horizon and the north star is roughly equal to the observer's North latitude ... always within about 2/3 of a degree. This only works for locations north of the equator. The north star isn't visible at all from places south of the equator.
At 5 degrees latitude, either north or south, the sun sets on every night of the year. So it seems to me that at midnight, it must be below the horizon in EVERY direction.
The angle of Polaris above the northern horizon is very nearly equal to your north latitude, within about 1/3 of a degree. So it's over your head when you stand at the north pole, it sits nominally on your north horizon when you stand anywhere on the equator, and if you're south of the equator, you can never see it at all.
At the summer solstice, the Sun is 23.5 degrees north of the celestial equator. Love Field, Dallas, TX is at 32.8 degrees north.A "noon fix" is achieved by observing the altitude of the Sun at "local apparent noon", when the Sun is at its highest point in the sky. You can calculate your latitude by taking 90 degrees minus the observed angle above the horizon, or "altitude", and subtracting the declination, or Sun's angle north (or south) of the equator.In this case, we need to work the problem backwards. So take 90 - (latitude) + declination, or 90 - 32.8 + 23.5 = 80.7 degrees.Oh, one other thing; this is the altitude of the Sun above the SOUTHERN horizon. The Sun will never appear north of Dallas at noon. The question asks about the northern horizon. We could calculate the angle above the northern horizon as 180-80.7 or 99.3 degrees above the northern horizon.
Your latitude!
30 degrees for observers at a latitude of 30 degrees north
On the winter solstice at a latitude of 57 degrees north, the sun will be about 33 degrees below the horizon at night. This is because the tilt of the Earth causes the sun to not rise above a certain angle during the winter months at this latitude.
If the star Polaris is 29 degrees above the horizon, then your latitude is about 29 degrees North.Polaris is not exactly above the North Pole, but it is only about one-half degree away from that.
The North star will be 75 degrees above the horizon. Whatever degree you are at latitude, the North star will be the same degrees up. So at the north pole (90 degrees north), the star will be at the zenith (straight up). While at the equator (0 degrees north) the star will be at the horizon.