Your voyage commences off Cape May, NJ, at LAT 38° 40' N, LONG 74° 00' W, for LAT 44° 00' N, LONG 10° 00' W. Sea ice is north of 45° N and west of 45° W. Extensive naval exercises will be conducted within a 150-mile radius of LAT 50° 00' N, LONG 35° 00' W. Which statement about a direct great circle route is TRUE? (Use gnomonic tracking chart WOXZC 5274.)
• Great circle vs. rhumb line behavior on a gnomonic chart • How to estimate the vertex latitude of a great circle between two positions • Evaluating whether a plotted great circle passes through specific hazard zones (ice limits, exercises, shoals)
• On a gnomonic chart, how do you plot and inspect a great circle between the departure and destination points to see where it bends north or south? • Roughly between 38°40'N and 44°00'N, would you expect the vertex of the great circle to be north or south of both, and by how much for an Atlantic crossing like this? • If you sketch the track, does it actually cross the regions defined by the ice limit and the naval exercise radius, or pass close to Sable Island’s shoals?
• Check the approximate longitude of the vertex and its maximum latitude from the gnomonic chart. • Confirm whether the plotted great circle track ever enters the area north of 45°N and west of 45°W (the ice limits). • Confirm the closest point of approach of the great circle to LAT 50°00'N, LONG 35°00'W to see if it falls within 150 NM.
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