celestial navigation
Americannoun
noun
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Navigation of a ship or aircraft based on the observed positions of celestial bodies.
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See more at altazimuth coordinate system
Etymology
Origin of celestial navigation
First recorded in 1935–40
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The great and the small collide when the Tu‘itonga’s two younger children surprisingly appear on Bird Island, led by the middle son, a “wayfinder” who has learned the sacred craft of celestial navigation.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2025
Dr. Sharvit speculated that, lacking compasses, astrolabes or sextants, seafarers in the 14th century B.C. probably relied on celestial navigation, taking sightings and angles of the sun and star positions.
From New York Times ● Jun. 20, 2024
Some examples of ancient TEK include midwifery, celestial navigation and fish conservation.
From Scientific American ● Aug. 1, 2023
To top it off, the crew managed this feat without the aid of maps or radio contact, using only celestial navigation and an atlas obtained from a library in New Zealand.
From Seattle Times ● Dec. 7, 2021
With the compass gone they would have to depend entirely upon celestial navigation.
From Dave Dawson on Guadalcanal by Bowen, Robert Sydney
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
