navigation
The orientation of itself by an animal towards a destination, regardless of its direction, by means other than the recognition of landmarks. Compare compass orientation; pilotage.
navigation n. Reference library
The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military
... n. 1 the process or activity of accurately ascertaining one's position and planning and following a route. 2 the passage of ships. navigational ...
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A Dictionary of Marketing (4 ed.)
... The facilitation of movement from one web page to another, or from one type of online content to another. See also broad and shallow navigation...
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World Encyclopedia
... Determining one's position and course, often while in a road vehicle, ship, or aircraft. Five main techniques are used: dead reckoning, piloting, celestial navigation, inertial guidance, and radio navigation. The last includes the use of radio beacons, loran , radar navigation, and satellite navigation systems. Instruments and charts enable the navigator to determine position, expressed in terms of latitude and longitude , direction in degrees of arc from true north, speed, and distance travelled. See also compass ; gyrocompass ; ...
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A Dictionary of Law (10 ed.)
... n. 1. The science of directing the course of a vessel or aircraft. Loss occasioned by improper navigation may arise even though a vessel is moored. 2. A right to navigate inland...
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A Dictionary of Construction, Surveying and Civil Engineering (2 ed.)
... The science of planning/plotting and following a course of travel, particularly used for directing ships and...
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A Dictionary of Space Exploration (3 ed.)
...navigation The science and technology of finding the position, course, and distance travelled by a ship, plane, or other craft. Satellite navigation uses satellites that broadcast time and position signals. The US global positioning system ( GPS ) was introduced in 1992 , featuring 24 Navstar satellites. The same year, 85 nations agreed to take part in trials of a new navigation system known as FANS, or Future Navigation System, using 24 Russian Glonass satellites and the 24 US GPS...
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A Dictionary of Zoology (5 ed.)
... The orientation of itself by an animal towards a destination, regardless of its direction, by means other than the recognition of landmarks. Compare compass orientation ; pilotage ....
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A Dictionary of Ecology (5 ed.)
... The orientation of itself by an animal towards a destination, regardless of its direction, by means other than the recognition of landmarks. Compare compass orientation ; pilotage...
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A Dictionary of Business and Management (6 ed.)
... On the Internet, the process of finding and moving between different information and pages on a website. It is governed by menu arrangements, site structure, the layout of individual pages, and, sometimes, searching...
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A Dictionary of Human Geography
... The practice of travelling from one place to another following a prescribed route. Such navigation requires the accurate monitoring of position and direction. It is a key maritime and aerial skill for sailing or flying efficiently across oceans and continents, in order to arrive safely at a destination. Prior to the development of modern technologies such as GPS , navigators would use techniques such as dead reckoning, taking celestial measurements, or identifying key landmarks to plot their...
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A Dictionary of Biology (8 ed.)
...navigation The complex process that enables animals to travel along a particular course in order to reach a specific destination. Navigation is an important aspect of behaviour in many animals, particularly those, such as birds, fish, and some insects, that undergo migrations . Landmarks, such as coastlines and mountain ranges, are important reference points for navigation but many animals can navigate successfully without the aid of these, by using the sun, stars, magnetic fields, odours, and polarized light. For example, birds use the sun and stars as...
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A Dictionary of Animal Behaviour (2 ed.)
...birds use the sun and stars as a compass, but a compass alone is not sufficient for bicoordinate navigation. Similarly, there is evidence for use of a magnetic compass by animals, but this alone is not sufficient for bicoordinate (i.e. map and compass) navigation. Despite much research, there is no convincing evidence for the use of a map analogue by animals. Navigation by non-bicoordinate methods is possible in theory, especially in the case of return navigation to a location previously experienced. Information gained on the outward journey can be used to...
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Mike Richey
The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea (2 ed.)
... , from the latin navis (a ship) and agere (to drive), the art and science of conducting a craft as it moves about its ways. See celestial navigation ; coastal navigation ; hyperbolic navigation ; inertial navigation ; satellite navigation . What follows is a short history of navigation. Navigation Without Artefacts. When James Cook discovered Oceania in the 18th century the cultures were still at a Neolithic stage of development. But to Captain Cook, perhaps the most illustrious of all scientific navigators , it was a matter of wonder the...
Navigation Reference library
Willem F. J. MORZER BRUYNS
Berkshire Encyclopedia of World History (2 ed.)
...Navigation The science of navigation, or the charting of a ship through the water from one place to another, can be categorized as coastal, ocean, or practical navigation. Coastal navigation is practiced within sight of land, and orientation is provided by data such as the profile of the coastline, knowledge of conspicuous landmarks, water depth, and local sea currents. When sailing across an ocean or a large stretch of water beyond sight of the coast, a mariner will register his approximate position by dead reckoning. This is the method by which a ship’s...
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The Oxford Companion to the History of Modern Science
...development of a satellite-based positioning system with navigation radio beacons transmitting from orbits in space. The Global Positioning System (GPS), under construction since the 1970s, came on line with twenty-four satellites in 1995 . Eva G. R. Taylor , The Haven-Finding Art: A History of Navigation from Odysseus to Captain Cook (1956). Charles H. Cotter , A History of Nautical Astronomy (1968). W. E. May , A History of Marine Navigation (1973). Jean Randier , Marine Navigation Instruments (1977). Jim...
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Philip de Souza
The Oxford Companion to Classical Civilization (2 ed.)
... can be defined as the art of taking a ship successfully from one chosen point to another. From a very early stage the relatively calm, tideless waters of the Mediterranean encouraged travel by sea. Seagoing ships were not normally used in the winter months, because storms and poor visibility made navigation hazardous, but Hesiod ’s suggestion that sailing be limited to July and August is overcautious (Hes. Op . 663–5 ), the period between the vernal and autumnal equinoxes being the best season, with some leeway at either end. Ancient vessels were...
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The Oxford Dictionary of the Classical World
... is the art of guiding a ship at sea. The relatively calm, tideless waters of the Mediterranean encouraged travel by sea. Seagoing ships were not normally used in the winter months, because storms and poor visibility made navigation hazardous, but Hesiod 's suggestion that sailing be limited to July and August is overcautious, the period between the vernal and autumnal equinoxes being the best season, with some leeway at either end. Ancient vessels were either paddled, rowed, or sailed. Their speed depended upon size, type of propulsion, and the...
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The Oxford Dictionary of the Renaissance
...with the calendar were irrelevant because the measurements were not very exact. Contemporary literature is much concerned with improved instruments for navigation, such as the cross-staff , long used by astronomers but introduced onto ships in the early fifteenth century, or the backstaff ; the uses of new instruments, usually ones obtainable from the author, are found in many treatises on navigation, for instance one by the well-known instrument-maker Michel Coignet ( 1549–1623 ), Onderwysinghe op de principaelste puncten der navigatien ( 1580 ). The...
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Eric McGeer
The Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium
... was restricted by climate and Byz. control of the sea; naval technology remained limited. Since the Byz. ship was usually small with a shallow keel, designed essentially for coastal cruising, the Byz. remained cautious mariners, “touching dry land with the oars” ( Theophylaktos of Ohrid, ed. Gautier , 2:139.28–29). Sailing speeds reached 6 to 8 knots. The introduction of the triangular lateen sail by the 7th C. provided easier handling in bad weather and greater flexibility in catching the wind, but steering by compass, developed in the 13th C.,...
navigation Reference library
Philip de Souza
The Oxford Classical Dictionary (4 ed.)
... can be defined as the art of taking a ship successfully from one chosen point to another. From a very early stage the relatively calm, tideless waters of the Mediterranean encouraged travel by sea. Seagoing ships were not normally used in the winter months, because storms and poor visibility made navigation hazardous, but Hesiod 's suggestion that sailing be limited to July and August is overcautious ( Hes. Op. 663–5), the period between the vernal and autumnal equinoxes being the best season, with some leeway at either end. Ancient vessels were...
