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| MARINE RADAR Boating, Raymarine Pathfinder | By Learnzat.com Marine navigation has been an important implement in advancing our modern technology. Mariners can find their position anywhere on earth with a universal coordinate system that uses meridians of longitude and parallels of latitude. Use of GPS technology is now constantly encountered in our society. Vessels hold GPS chart plotters that contain complete digital charts of the ocean, dash mounted receivers direct drivers to a not so well known address, GPS receivers can be found in Cellular phones and laptop computers, a hiker can use their GPS to find their way into a new area to explore, or you could look for a geocach. GPS technology touches our lives and has had a considerable impact on the quality of our outdoor experiences. The NAVSTAR satellites that provide information to your GPS receiver are also dependent on accurate time keeping. NAVSTAR is short for Navigation Signal Timing And Ranging Global Positioning System. Your handheld GPS receiver can amazingly calculate distance measurements from four GPS satellites simultaneously to compute your exact time and position. RADAR is an abbreviation that stands for Radio Detection and Ranging. A radar set is composed of a transmitter and a receiver. Radio frequency (RF) energy is transmitted out away from the radar equipped boat. Some RF strikes objects within its path and subsequently reflected to the receiver. The equipment amplifies the return signal and displays it as a position relative to the boat. Wooden or plastic boats do not reflect radio waves well and are hard to see on a screen. Radar equipped vessels should actively use their equipment to assist in maintaining a proper lookout and avoiding collisions. Being visible is critical. Commercial vessels use sophisticated collision avoidance systems that work off the vessels' radar set. These systems can acquire and track targets, and sound an alert if there is a risk of collision developing. Small craft, especially those with non-metallic hulls built of wood or composites, are difficult to see on the screen. Reflectors are one way you can improve your signature and work to Avoid Boat Collisions. |
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