Lesson 1. Navigational instruments

1. Read the following words:

alcohol diameter material

also enough neutralize

appliance gyro reduce

compass immediate reduction

departure majority throughout

2. Grammar. Сложноподчиненные предложения с придаточными причины.

Союзы: as, because, since.

As I wanted to become an engineer, I entered Sevastopol National Technical University. — Так как я хотел стать инженером, я поступил в Севастопольский национальный технический университет.

I entered it because I wanted to become an engineer. — Я поступил в него, потому что хотел стать инженером.

Since my brother is an engineer he can help me with this work — Постольку поскольку мой брат инженер, он может помочь мне выполнить эту работу.

3. Read the following text: Navigational instruments

Seamanship is the art of handling a ship or a boat under all conditions of weather, tide, current, or other influences affecting its immediate movement or safety.

In order to conduct a ship safely to her destination, it is necessary to know her speed and course as accurately as possible at all times. In addition, the depth of water must be known, or at least the fact that it is deep enough for safety. It is often necessary to know the bearing, or the direction and the distance to fixed objects and other vessels sighted.

The instruments and appliances used to obtain this information are sometimes called navigational instruments because they are also used by the navigator to fix the geographical position of the ship and to establish a safe course to the desired destination.

Liquid Compass

This is a magnetic compass consisting of a compass card 7.5 inches in diameter made of tinned brass, on the underside of which are fixed magnets. The whole rests on the pivot in a liquid composed of Varsol* or of 45% alcohol and 55% distilled water to resist freezing.

The compass itself is mounted in a stand called the «binnacle». The binnacle, however, is more than a mere support for the compass. It contains all the various corrections** used to adjust the magnetic compass and reduce deviations.

Since the Earth's magnetic field is not uniform throughout, and since the ship is seldom on a level plane and the majority of ships are not made of wood or nonmagnetic materials, the compass is acted upon by a series of outside magnetic forces which tend to reduce its accuracy. The various corrections contained in or on the compass binnacle act to reduce or neutralize these outside forces.

Notes:

*Varsol — масло, применяемое в качестве заполнителя в современных компасах.

**corrections — компенсация /в магнитном компасе/

Words to be learnt:

destination — назначение, место назначения

compass card — картушка компаса

pivot — шпилька магнитного компаса

binnacle — нактоуз

brass — латунь

tinned brass — луженая латунь

liquid — жидкость

liquid compass — жидкостный компасе

navigational instruments — штурманские приборы

outside — внешний, с внешней стороны

inside — внутренний, с внутренней стороны

force — сила

to freeze, froze, frozen — замерзать, замораживать

to resist — сопротивляться, противостоять

to reduce — уменьшать, сокращать

to reduce deviation — уменьшать девиацию

to mount — устанавливать, монтировать

mount — установка

to act — действовать

action — действие

to adjust — регулировать, устанавливать

adjustment — регулировка, установка

EXERCISES