What does "dead reckoning" mean?

A method of estimating the position of a ship or aircraft by applying estimates of the distance and direction travelled from a previously known position. In respect to ships/boats, it excludes the effect of wind and current on the vessel. Compare with estimated position. Abbreviation: DR

What is a synonym for "dead reckoning"?

Common synonyms include: aspect, astronavigation, attitude, azimuth, ballpark figure, bearing.

Dead reckoning

noun

noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun

1
A method of estimating the position of a ship or aircraft by applying estimates of the distance and direction travelled from a previously known position. In respect to ships/boats, it excludes the effect of wind and current on the vessel. Compare with estimated position. Abbreviation: DR countable, uncountable
2
navigation without the aid of celestial observations wordnet
3
an estimate based on little or no information wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms

aspect astronavigation attitude azimuth ballpark figure bearing

Antonyms

All antonyms

GPS navigation celestial celestial navigation exact calculation

Etymology

Uncertain. Not short for deduced or deductive, but this belief explains the alternative spelling ded reckoning (which actually originated centuries later).

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