Celestial Navigation Teacher Resources

Students explore the different methods used in celestial Navigation and astronavigation. In this math lesson, students construct a sextant and demonstrate how it works.

Students engage in a lesson which shows them that celestial navigation is the art and science of finding one's geographic position by means of astronomical observations, particularly by measuring altitudes of celestial objects - sun,...

Middle schoolers, through teacher lecture and class discussion, explore historical methods of navigation: dead reckoning and celestial navigation.

Ancient texts, like Homer's Odyssey, mentions navigating ships by observing constellations. Pupils learn about the link between history and astronomy as they relate to navigation in the Bronze Age. Scholars complete two hands-on...

Evidence shows the Vikings likely navigated by using a simple sundial to find their course. Videos, a short story, and discussion help bring this time period to life as they study European history with a hands-on experiment. Scholars...

Scholars build a compass using a needle, cork, magnet, and a water-filled cup in order to locate the magnetic north and south.

Students explain the meaning of and recognize the map outlines of a peninsula, an isthmus, and a cape.

Historians have proven that as early as 1497 skilled navigators were using a kamal to sail across oceans. Scholars learn about navigation tools and astronomy before building their own kamals. They then learn how to use it to determine...

Basically, this is an interactive exploration of educational astronomy software and an app. Young astronomers discover how the apparent motion of the sky relates to Earth's movements and the position of the observer. It is out of this...

Could you determine longitude based on measuring time? Early explorers used a longitude clock to do just that. Scholars learn about early exploration and the importance of the invention of the clock. Then pupils build their own longitude...

Young scholars practice finding the location of cities across the world by using an interactive Web site, and figure out the world's time and the value of time zones the world over.

Students examine historical methods of navigation. They discuss the techniques of "Dead Reckoning," "Heaving the Log," and "Chip Log," pretend to sail from Europe to North America using vectors and determine the location of their...

Students research a Canadian Indian Tale. In this constellation lesson, students hear the story "Never-Ending Bear Hunt" which describes the constellations from the Native American perspective. They create their own constellation wheel...

Young scholars study the basic concepts of the Global Positioning System and how it increases the accuracy of navigation. They examine trilateration and how the speed of light is used to calculate distances.

Celestial navigation is the art and science of finding one's geographic position by means of astronomical observations, particularly by measuring altitudes of celestial objects - sun, moon, planets or stars. This activity starts with a...

In this lesson, 7th graders are shown how Great Navigators of the past stayed on course with the historical methods of navigation. The concepts of dead reckoning and celestial navigation are discussed. Using Vector Voyage students will...

In this lesson, students will learn how great navigators of the past stayed on course - that is, the historical methods of navigation. The concepts of dead reckoning and celestial navigation are discussed.

For thousands of years, navigators have looked to the sky for direction. Today, celestial navigation has simply switched from using natural objects to human-created satellites. A constellation of satellites, called the Global Positioning...

An introduction to our solar system: the planets, our Sun and our Moon. Students begin by learning the history and engineering of space travel. They make simple rockets to acquire a basic understanding Newton's third law of motion. They...

This video, adapted from material provided by the ECHO partners, describes three different ways that people have navigated the oceans by use of instruments, celestial bodies, and the surrounding environment.

Empty space in outer space is not truly empty. Celestial objects fill the space not occupied by planets, stars, and such. This resource identifies these objects and further explains their existence.

A great science project from Science Buddies that examines how ancient peoples navigated without the benefit of a GPS. Find out which stars are important in navigation in the northern and southern hemispheres. The Science Buddies project...

Create your own astrolabe after reading to find out what one is. Measure heights of objects around you using the astrolabe.

In this Crash Course episode, Sabrina talks about an imaginary line called the Ecliptic and explains its cycle in the sky. [3:30]