NavList:

>>celestial navigation...sounds a bit ethereal, a bit cosmic, or spiritual. Indeed, over the years I have encountered quite a few people who hear the phrase "celestial navigation" and think that it has something to do with cosmic contemplation. <<

I have found this as well.  The "celestial navigation" phrase just doesn't communicate well to people outside the nautical/navigational community (which is almost everybody I know).  Most folks locally seem to seldom use the word "celestial" in their spoken language except in connection with Celestial Seasoning's herbal teas.  "Astro navigation" seemed like only a slight improvement.  It did have a Jetsons flavor for me (funny how these things hang on for decades in the back of the mind).  I had never considered "nautical astronomy"...but I like it.

When speaking to a sailor or pilot, any descriptive phrase will work.  But when trying  to communicate with a person who may not even know what the word "sextant" means, I think I am liking the un-shortened phrase, "astronomical navigation" best.  Seems like I should have been able to work that out for myself long before this discussion on NavList, but I didn't.  So this has been a helpful dialog to me.

Bob