How do you use a US military compass?
Hold the compass in front of your nose with the lid facing out. Pick an object, rotate your entire body (not just the compass), and align the object with the sight wire. Look through the magnifying glass and find the green line that we matched to the sight wire. Locate the number on the inner dial.
How do you read a military compass?
Without moving your head, or the compass, read the azimuth through the Lens of the Lens Bracket. The azimuth, in degrees, is the red mark on the Dial lying directly under the Index Line of the compass crystal and in mils is the black mark on the outer perimeter of the Dial.
What are the two lines on a lensatic compass?
A round lensatic compass has no straight edge to align. Instead you will use an imaginary line that runs down the center of the compass. Two parts of this line include the sighting wire, which you can align with things that are visible on the map, and the center of the rotating compass card.
How do you use a compass sighting line?
Hold the compass level with the mirror at about a 45° angle. Use the sighting notch to align the compass with the target. Looking into the mirror, turn the dial to align the orienting arrow with the north needle. Turn the dial to align the orienting arrow with the north arrow.
How do you set declination on a compass?
Turn the compass over. Insert the metal key (provided with your compass) into the adjustment screw. Turn the key until the declination indicator is the correct number of degrees east or west of 0° (15.6 degrees West in this example).
How many degrees does a military compass have?
North is at 0 degrees, East is at 90 degrees, South is at 180 degrees and West is at 270 degrees. The vast majority of compasses sold today will use this system, as will most paper and electronic mapping.
What is the bezel ring on a compass used for?
A bezel ring will let you set your course once for future reference and prevent you from making costly errors later. Military compasses use a notched bezel ring that moves three degrees with each click. For example, to shoot a 30-degree azimuth, you’d rotate your bezel ring ten clicks counter-clockwise.
How do you find direction with a compass?
Place the compass flat on your palm, with the direction of travel arrow pointing towards where you want to go. Twist your compass dial so that the orienting arrow lines up with the red end of the magnetic needle.
Is minus declination east or west?
After that, you make declination adjustments by adding or subtracting that declination each time you work with a bearing. Note that, for all calculations, an east declination is a positive number and a west declination is a negative number.
How do I find my magnetic declination?
The degrees of declination for an area are usually located on the bottom margin of the map near the north arrow, or they can be located using a declination chart.
Why does my compass have 64 degrees?
Compass markings. Occasionally one sees compasses with 0 to 64 on the dial, these are Mils (it is the measurement of a metre at a distance of 1000m) and used by the military.
Why is there a magnifying glass on my compass?
The parts of the compass are a base plate with different measurements for calculating mileage and distance. The magnifying glass is used to magnify things on your map. The arrow at the top of the compass is called the direction of travel arrow.
How do you read a compass bezel?
How to use a Compass Bezel – Watch and Learn #17 – YouTube
How do you read a compass for beginners?
How To Accurately Read A Compass – YouTube
Which way is north on a compass?
To find north, pick up the compass and hold it level with the dial on top. The red end of the magnetic needle will point north. Ignore all the other markings on the compass except the direction that the red half of the needle points to.
Do I add or subtract declination?
Whenever you transfer a magnetic bearing taken in the field to your map, you add the magnetic declination to get the true bearing. (Note that a west declination is, in essence, subtracted because you are adding a negative number.)
Do I add or subtract magnetic variation?
The main thing to remember is whether to add or subtract variation and deviation. From true to compass add the degrees if they’re west (and subtract east), and from compass to true do the opposite; subtract west (and add east).
How far off is true north from magnetic north?
The Geographic North Pole differs from the Magnetic North Pole by about 500 kilometers. The Geographic North Pole is where lines of longitudes converge into what we call the North Pole.
How many degrees is true north from magnetic north?
0 degrees
An azimuth value of 0 degrees signifies true north, pointing directly towards the geographical North Pole.
What are the 32 points of a compass called?
These eight directional names have been further compounded known as tertiary intercardinal directions, resulting in a total of 32 named points evenly spaced around the compass: north (N), north by east (NbE), north-northeast (NNE), northeast by north (NEbN), northeast (NE), northeast by east (NEbE), east-northeast (ENE …
What compass Do Navy Seals use?
The TAC-300 is the latest in the TAC series of diver navigation designed for the U.S. Navy SEALS. Smaller and lighter than the TAC-100 and TAC-200 models, the TAC-300’s highly accurate compass and digital depth gauge/timer are built into a rugged plastic board with a protection sock.
What is azimuth on a compass?
Azimuths. Azimuths are the angle between the north/south line, and an imaginary line between you and an object/location you are headed for. The important thing to understand about azimuths is that azimuths are measured in angles. Those angles are always measured clockwise starting at 0° up to 359(.
What is the index line on a compass?
Index line or indicator line is located on the housing below the turning dial and lines up with the direction arrow. The index line is used to set the compass for an azimuth or bearing. 5. Magnetic needle floats inside the compass housing.
How do you find magnetic north with a compass?
The Compass: True North vs Magnetic North – YouTube
Is north Left or right?
Most maps show North at the top and South at the bottom. To the left is West and to the right is East.