what's the difference between true, magnetic, and compass north? how do u convert it from one to another?

Question

i'm 12, and i'm in the navy cadets, recently, the instructors hav been teaching us about the true north, compass north, and magnetic north during navigation lesson so we'll be ready to sail during the summer. but i just don't get the difference between the three and how you convert it from one to another. so can someone please explain the difference between the three and the convertion to me in a way so a 12 year old will understand. thanks a million!

Answer 1

http://www.compassdude.com/compass-declination.shtml

Here is a site that will answer the details if you want to read it. The conversion to true north depends entirely on your location and the time of the compass reading as the magnetic north is always moving. There are only two points in longitude in the northern hemisphere where the magnetic north and true north line up at any given time and are on opposite sides of the earth. All other locations have a deviation to true north.

Answer 2

The magnetic north pole is not the same as the true north pole. The Earth spins on an imaginary axis running through the true north pole, but the magnetic north pole is some degrees off of that. The Earth acts like a giant magnet, and compass needles, which are magnetized, point to the magnetic north for that reason.

Even though magnetic north is not directly in line with true north, one can still navigate using a compass, because the difference doesn't really matter unless you are very far north. This answerer is not sure how to convert between true north and magnetic north.

Answer 3

magnetic north changes position each year because the pole to magnetic north wanders so it is not always pointing north sometimes it is to the north-east and sometimes it is to the north west. Your compass is going to be pointing to magnetic north which is located at whatever location the magnetic north pole has wandered to at the time you are looking at your compass. Your location latitudinaly and longitudinaly will effect how many degrees your compass will be off of true north. Some compasses, Brunton compasses for example have a dial you can turn to change where north falls on your compass. If you turn the dial to the amount of degrees/ direction from true north your location is at then it corrects for true north. You can look up on the internet the amount of degrees to turn your compass dial to correct for your location . Another way to correct your compas if the internet is not avalible is to find the north star and have someone stand under it with a rock on a string , (a plumbob). You have to line the north star and the rock on the string up with your compass and shoot a bearing on the rock. The amount of degrees from north that the compass needle is pointing will give you the degree amount to change your compass to so any bearing you shoot will be correct.