How do you obtain gyro error with the ship at wharf?

Answer 1

Well, honey, if you want to get that gyro error with the ship at the wharf, you better make sure that ship is as still as a statue. No rocking and rolling allowed! Once that ship is nice and steady, you can calibrate that gyro and see just how off course you've been sailing. Just remember, patience is key - ain't nobody got time for wonky readings.

Answer 2

To obtain gyro error with the ship at a wharf, you would need to conduct a gyrocompass swing. This involves turning the ship in a full circle while stationary at the wharf, allowing the gyrocompass to align with true north. By comparing the gyrocompass readings with known true north bearings, you can determine the gyro error. This error is crucial for accurate navigation as it accounts for the deviation between the gyrocompass and true north.

Answer 3

Well, isn't that a happy little question! When you're at the wharf, the gyro error can be obtained by comparing the gyrocompass reading with a known reference point, like a fixed navigation mark or a GPS position. Just remember to stay calm and focus on the process, like painting a beautiful landscape. Happy navigating!

Answer 4

There are numerous ways to determine gyro error while pierside. At a minium all methods below require accurate charts and a device for taking a line of position (i.e. bearing circle or sextant).

Here are the methods I know of:

Celestial fixes (i.e. Amplitude of the Sun or Azimuth of the Sun (or Polaris))

This method is complicated and time consuming. It requires knowledge of how to take celestial fixes as well as the Almanacs (or computer programs) to complete it.

Process:

Shoot a bearing to the celestial body.

Enter time and location (Latitude and Longitude) of fix into reduction tables (in Almanac). This provides the what the body should bear.

Subtract the bearing from Almanac from the visual bearing. Negative bearing error is to the East. Positive Error is to the West. Hopefully your error is less than 1 degree.

Pierside [visual] Fix / "Trial and Error"Method

This method is very time consuming but is simple enough for anyone with basic visual navigation skills to complete.

Process:

Shoot three (or more) lines of position (LOP).

Plot on chart. If you end up with a pinpoint fix then assume you have no gyro error. However, in the more likely case that the fix is not exact (looks like a triangle), estimate equal amounts of error for each LOP.

Repeat this method adding in error until you achieve a pinpoint fix. When pinpoint is achieved, whatever estimated error was used is the actual error.

Distant Object Method / Radian Rule Method

(I'll finish this response tomorrow)