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Sailing reference
Clear explanations of the language used in navigation, pilotage, weather, safety and life under sail.
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Looking astern at a mark you have passed to check your track
A bearing taken on an object behind the vessel, ideally one just left astern, gives an immediate check that the intended ground track is being made good. Because the eye can detect small angular changes on a distant object, a back bearing on a departure mark is a sensitive indicator of cross-tide set. It is the reciprocal of the course made good over the ground from that object, not of the course steered.
Read definition →Wind shifting anticlockwise or clockwise around the compass
Backing is a change in wind direction anticlockwise, for example from west to southwest; veering is clockwise, for example from south to southwest. The terms are absolute and identical in both hemispheres. In the Northern Hemisphere an approaching warm front typically backs the wind, while frontal passage veers it, so the sequence of shifts is a reliable clue to where a depression's centre lies relative to the vessel.
Read definition →Suction and steering pull felt near banks or passing ships
Close to a channel bank or another vessel, asymmetric flow creates a pressure field: the bow is pushed away from the near bank while the stern is drawn towards it, so the vessel sheers and needs continuous helm. Between vessels passing or overtaking at close range the low pressure between the hulls draws them bodily together. The effects increase sharply with speed and with reduced depth, and the remedies are early moderate helm and less speed.
Sailing reference
Clear explanations of the language used in navigation, pilotage, weather, safety and life under sail.