Ground Marking : Compass Rose (Aerial Aid-to-Navigation)

USA / California / North Edwards /
 landmark, interesting place, compass rose
This is the world's largest compass rose, pointing to true north. Pilots use this to calibrate heading indicators. This does not indicate magnetic north.
Wikipedia article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compass_rose
Nearby cities:
Coordinates:   34°57'14"N   117°52'24"W

Comments

  • Since magnetic north is constanly moving, I wonder if this has to be re-built every so often.
  • Pilot's don't use it anymore, because mag north has moved. They use gyrocompasses and gps. The compass rose is maintained for posterity
  • This is a Compass Rose, not a magnetic compass. The Compass Rose never changes, it always points to true north. There is magnetic deviation, which is a local measurement. The magnetic north and true north is measured in degrees, and pilots/ navigators have charts that show magnetic deviation. Most navigation maps show the deviation. See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnetic_variation
  • Isn't "360" supposed to point strictly up (real North Pole, not magnetic)?
This article was last modified 8 years ago