Q: What are those
little tiny numbers all over the chart?
A:
Those are SOUNDINGS or the depth of the water. SOUNDINGS can be in FATHOMS (One Fathom = 6 feet), FEET, or METERS (1 Meter =
3.28 feet). Every Captain Segull Chart tells
the user on the bottom of the chart if the SOUNDINGS are in FATHOMS, FEET OR METERS.
Q:
What are all those lines on the chart?
A:
The curved lines on the Chart are
LORAN LINES (or TDs –Time Differences). The LORAN TDs are placed as an overlay on
OFFSHORE CHARTS only, by the US Government or NOAA. (The
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration). Captain Segull’s Charts uses only
GPS (Global Positioning System or Latitude and Longitude).
The HORIZONTAL LINES on the Chart are LATITUDE LINES. The VERTICAL LINES on the Chart are LONGITUDE LINES. These lines are used to measure GPS or Latitude and
Longitude.
Q:
What are the purple areas on the Chart?
A:
Captain Segull Charts have fishing areas
designated in magenta. These are the “hottest”
fishing spots. When the magenta covers the
blue on the Chart, it turns a purple color, but is still a fishing spot.
Q:
What are the scales around the Charts?
A:
The scales on the right and left sides
(East and West) are LATITUDE SCALES. The scales on
the top and bottom sides (North and South) are LONGITUDE SCALES. Each scale is divided into degrees and minutes.
Q:
How do I measure a Nautical Mile?
A:
One Nautical Mile is One Minute or 6,076
feet. This is always measured on the
LATITUDE SCALE (East and West). Take a
divider. Place one point on your starting
point and the other point on your destination. Put
the dividers on the LATITUDE SCALE (East and West) and this will determine your Nautical
Miles in distance. NOAA does not utilize
Distance Scales on Offshore Charts. Distance
Scales are only utilized on Nearshore or Inshore Charts.
The above method is used to determine the distance.
Q:
What do the GPS Coordinates mean?
A:
GPS coordinates on a Chart tell
you where that fishing area, wreck or buoy is located.
For example: The coordinate for
the Hudson Canyon Tip is 39 degrees, 40.956 minutes Latitude and 72 degrees, 28.464
minutes Longitude written as: 39 40.956’/72
28.464’. Every degree is divided into 60
minutes. Each minute is divided into 10ths,
100ths and 1000s of a minute. Captain Segull’s
Charts uses only degrees and minutes.
Q:
What are seconds?
A:
Some coordinates can be given in
Degrees, Minutes and Seconds. Using the above
example of the Hudson Canyon Tip, this would be written as:
39 40.57.36” Latitude and 72 28.27.84”. If you find a coordinate that is written in
seconds, you can convert it to minutes by dividing by 60:
57.36 seconds divided by 60 is .956 minutes and 27.84 seconds divided by 60
is .464 minutes. Conversely, to get a seconds
reading, multiply these figures by 60: .956’
x 60 = .57.36”; .464’ x 60 = .27.84”. Captain Segull’s Charts utilize only degrees,
minutes and hundreds or thousands of minutes.
Q:
What is The Mercator Projection?
A:
Most Charts will have this
designation on them:
Mercator
Projection
North
American Datum of 1983
(World
Geodetic System of 1984)
That is the last
time the earth was surveyed by the Government for Latitude and Longitude. Some charts may designate the North American Datum
as 1927, but most charts are 1983. Your hand
held GPS will ask what Datum you are using when you program it. The GPS will also ask the degrees and minutes. If using a Captain Segull Chart, you will program
your hand held in minutes only and not seconds. As in:
39 degrees, 40.956 minutes and 72 degrees, 28.464 minutes.
Q:
What do the buoy designations mean?
A:
A Nautical Chart will tell the
mariner many different things. For example,
the “B” buoy going into New York Harbor, which is also a popular fishing spot,
is designated as: Y “B” Fl Y
6s Racon (---…). This means to the
mariner that the buoy is a Yellow Flashing buoy, the name of the buoy is “B” and
it flashes every 6 seconds with a Radar Transponder Beacon (Racon) with one long dash and
3 dots. These meanings are very helpful in
locating the proper buoy for where you intend to go. There
are many other abbreviations such as Co=Coral, Co
Rf=Coral Reef, Oys = Oysters, etc. All
Government abbreviations can be found in Chart No. 1, available at www.waterproofcharts.com or at the Government
Website: http://chartmaker.ncd.noaa.gov.
If you have any further questions, please contact us at
1-888-473-4855.
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