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angle on the bow

This is essentially the same as a relative bearing (R), but typically not using a 0 to 360 system but rather using port and starboard and typically not referring to things aft of the beam.

Thus we might hear, 30º on the starboard bow, meaning something is bearing in a direction that is 30º to the right of dead ahead. This would correspond to 030R. Whereas 30º on the port bow would correspond to 330R.

The plain phrase on the starboard bow, would typically mean 45º, but could be anything in the range of say 45º ± 30º. On the other hand "broad on the starboard bow would imply something much closer to exactly 45º

For more precise navigation, we can do fixes by doubling the angle on the bow, which means in this case an actual bearing measurement. For example, we are headed at 200M and and we measure the bearing to a light to be 210M, then this light has an angle on the bow 10º on the port bow. If we note our log at that time, and keeep a steady course, then when that light bears 220M we have doubled the angle on the bow, so we know the distance to the light is the distance we have just run from when it was 10º on the bow.

See relative bearings.


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