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A modern military compass, with included sight device for aligning. A compass is a device that shows the cardinal directions used for navigation and geographic orientation. It commonly consists of a magnetized needle or other element, such as a compass card or compass rose, which can pivot to align itself with magnetic north.
Direction determination refers to the ways in which a cardinal direction or compass point can be determined in navigation and wayfinding.The most direct method is using a compass (magnetic compass or gyrocompass), but indirect methods exist, based on the Sun path (unaided or by using a watch or sundial), the stars, and satellite navigation.
32-point compass rose. The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography.A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each separated by 90 degrees, and secondarily divided by four ordinal (intercardinal) directions—northeast, southeast, southwest, and ...
Song dynasty figurine of a man holding a compass. The compass is a magnetometer used for navigation and orientation that shows direction in regards to the geographic cardinal points. The structure of a compass consists of the compass rose, which displays the four main directions on it: East (E), South (S), West (W) and North (N). The angle ...
A standard Brunton compass, used commonly by geologists and surveyors to obtain a bearing in the field. In navigation, bearing or azimuth is the horizontal angle between the direction of an object and north or another object. The angle value can be specified in various angular units, such as degrees, mils, or grad. More specifically:
The azimuth is the angle formed between a reference direction (in this example north) and a line from the observer to a point of interest projected on the same plane as the reference direction orthogonal to the zenith. An azimuth (/ ˈ æ z ə m ə θ / ⓘ; from Arabic: اَلسُّمُوت, romanized: as-sumūt, lit.
Direction determination refers to the ways in which a cardinal direction or compass point can be determined in navigation and wayfinding.The most direct method is using a compass (magnetic compass or gyrocompass), but indirect methods exist, based on the Sun path (unaided or by using a watch or sundial), the stars, and satellite navigation.
To go north using a compass for navigation, set a bearing or azimuth of 0° or 360°. Traveling directly north traces a meridian line upwards. North is specifically the direction that, in Western culture, is considered the fundamental direction: North is used (explicitly or implicitly) to define all other directions.