You wish to make good a course of 300°T while turning for an engine speed of 11 knots. The set is 350°T, and the drift is 2.1 knots. Which course should you steer?
• Use of a current (set and drift) triangle to find course to steer and speed made good • Converting the set and drift into a current vector and combining it with the ship’s speed through the water • Relationship between course to steer, course made good, and the **current direction (set)"
• Sketch a vector for your desired course and speed made good, then add the current vector for the set and drift. From which direction must your ship’s heading vector come to end up on the desired track? • Think about whether you need to steer into or with the current set of 350°T in order to make good a course of 300°T. • Compare how big the correction must be: should your heading be slightly more to the right or left of 300°T, and by roughly how many degrees given that the drift is small compared to your own speed?
• Be sure you are using true directions for all vectors (course, set, and track) and keeping them on the same reference. • Confirm that the current vector (2.1 knots at 350°T) is drawn correctly: it points TOWARD 350°T, not away from it. • Check that the final ground track vector (resultant) points at 300°T, and that its length is consistent with the combination of 11 knots through the water and 2.1 knots of current.
No comments yet
Be the first to share your thoughts!