There are several ways to use the sun and stars to help you identify directions. However, these methods only give you a general orientation. If you understand the terrain of the area, you can identify the direction more precisely. So you need to learn the topography of the country or region where you or your team will be going, especially those with prominent features or landmarks. With an understanding of the terrain and the methods described below, you can identify the basic correct direction.
Use sunlight and shadows
If there is sunlight, there are two ways to easily identify the direction: use the end of the shadow and use the watch.
Use the end of the shadow. Everywhere in the world, the sun rises east and west, so wherever you are, you can follow the directions below (Figure 11-1):
â— Find a stick about 3 feet (1 meter) long, a flat, flat land with no vegetation growing, so that the shadow of the stick can be clearly projected onto the ground.
â— Insert the stick straight into the ground, but it does not need to be absolutely perpendicular to the ground.
â— Make a mark on the tip of the stick's shadow.
â— Wait for the shadow shift position to be 1 inch to 2 inches (approximately 10 to 15 minutes).
â— Mark the tip of the second shadow.
â— Draw a line, connect the first mark and the second mark, continue drawing after the second mark, and stop until the second mark is about 1 foot (30 cm).
â— The left foot stands on the first mark and the right foot stands on the other side of the line.
If you are in a temperate zone in the northern hemisphere, you are facing north in the direction you are facing, and you can then identify other directions.
If you are in a temperate zone in the southern hemisphere, you face the south.
Use your watch. You can also use the watch to identify the direction (Figure 11-2). The specific steps to use this method depend on whether you are in the temperate northern hemisphere or temperate southern hemisphere. Whether the watch is a traditional watch or an electronic watch. The temperate zone in the northern hemisphere ranges from 23.4°N latitude to 66.6°N latitude, while the temperate zone in the southern hemisphere ranges from 23.4°S latitude to 66.6°S latitude.
In the temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere, the steps for distinguishing directions using traditional watches are as follows: (Serial)
The steps for distinguishing directions using traditional watches in temperate regions of the southern hemisphere are as follows: (Serial)
There is a quick shortcut for distinguishing directions with a traditional watch. In the temperate zone of the northern hemisphere, point the watch hour hand at the sun (if it is in the southern hemisphere and point it at 12 o'clock), then follow the last steps of the above method to identify the direction. Now. Of course, the directions identified by this method are not as accurate as the conventional methods, but they are more rapid. Which method should be used depends on the situation.
If your watch is an electronic watch, then draw a traditional watch on the ground and draw the time (according to the time displayed on your electronic watch) so that the pointers point to the correct time, the hour hand must point to the shadow of the stick, the remaining steps and Like traditional watches.
Use the stars
You can see a lot of stars on a fine night and head towards the North Star. You just walk north. But the Polaris is not the brightest star in the sky, and it is sometimes difficult to find. To find Polaris, you need to know the following:
â— All other stars around Polaris.
â— Polaris is the last star on the handle of Little Bear (Little Beidou), but the entire Little Beidou is also very difficult to see from time to time.
â— The easiest way to find the Polaris is to use the Big Bear Constellation (Big Dipper). Draw a straight line between the last two stars of the Big Dipper Dooling (a polar star). This line will point to the North Star. The distance to the North Star is about five times the distance between the two astral stars.
â— The Big Dipper opposite is the Cassiopeia constellation. The Cassiopeia constellation consists of five stars. The shape is sometimes like an inclined M, and sometimes like an inclined W, depending on its position in the sky. The Polaris is facing the star in the middle of Cassiopeia. The distance between the North Star and Big Dipper and Cassiopeia is almost the same.
South of the equator can use the Southern Cross to identify a generally southerly direction. The Southern Cross is made up of four very bright stars, shaped like a sloping cross. The two stars on the longer axis of the cross are called polar stars. When using the cross seat to identify the South:
â— Imagine extending from the long axis, extending approximately five times the length of the axis from the foot. The end of this imaginary line is roughly south.
â— From the end of the imaginary line, look perpendicular to the horizon and select a landmark.
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