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Robert11 wrote:
> Hello,
>
> Great group.
>
> Am a retired engineer, and have always been very interested in
> navigation.
> Some of the most interesting courses I've ever taken were through the
> US Power Squadron where we learned, and took, many sights. Great
> courses; no idea if still offered.
>
As a very active USPS member, I can assure you (and anyone else who
might be interested) that USPS still offers great courses.   Almost all
have been updated in the past five years with recognition that GPS and
computers are part of 21st century navigation.   So, for example, the
offshore navigation courses still teach celestial, but as a co-technique
along with GPS rather than a sole technique.   Traverse tables and
mid-latitude sailings and meridional parts have given way to realization
that a $15 pocket scientific calculator (or an Excel spreadsheet) can
give the great-circle course between any two points.

Our coastal piloting courses have changed from traditional
position-finding techniques (horizontal and vertical angles, circles of
position, etc) to assuming that you're getting your position from GPS
and therefore teaching (1) safe navigation with GPS (eg, pre-checking
courses and qualifying them as safe), (2) cross-checking with formal and
informal techniques, and (3) what to do when the screen goes blank
(traditional DR and basic position finding).

Coastal courses now come with a demo version of MapTech's charting
software (which will read and display ANY NOAA chart, they're all now
available in digital format for free download) and I saw a demo of a
piece of software for our offshore courses that has the full pilot
charts in it and will do voyage planning (with speed/comfort tradeoffs!)
between any two points on the earth.

Lu Abel

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