Which navigation concept involves determining position by known speed, course and elapsed time?

Which navigation concept involves determining position by known speed, course and elapsed time?

• A. Dead reckoning
• B. Celestial navigation
• C. Inertial navigation
• D. Radio triangulation

Answer: (A)

Dead reckoning is the method of estimating your position by moving from a known starting point using your speed, the direction you’re traveling (course), and the elapsed time. Start with a known position, determine the distance traveled as speed times elapsed time, and project that displacement along the chosen course to arrive at a new estimated position. If the course or speed changes, you break the journey into segments and add up the successive displacements. This approach relies on internal measurements and does not use external navigation signals, but its accuracy can drift over time because of winds, currents, or small instrument errors, so it’s often checked against other navigation fixes.

Dead reckoning is the method of estimating your position by moving from a known starting point using your speed, the direction you’re traveling (course), and the elapsed time. Start with a known position, determine the distance traveled as speed times elapsed time, and project that displacement along the chosen course to arrive at a new estimated position. If the course or speed changes, you break the journey into segments and add up the successive displacements. This approach relies on internal measurements and does not use external navigation signals, but its accuracy can drift over time because of winds, currents, or small instrument errors, so it’s often checked against other navigation fixes.