HM Nautical Almanac Office: Older News Items

HM Nautical Almanac Office: Older News Items

Older News from HM Nautical Almanac Office

Eclipses Online: a new web site from HMNAO
HMNAO have created an online eclipse canon called Eclipses Online. The site provides maps, global and local circumstances, and animations for all solar and lunar eclipses from 1501 through 2100 inclusive. The information on this site is obtained from the software used in the production of The Astronomical Almanac. This site also provides access to the old UK Eclipse Group pages. You can go straight to the new material by following this link.
A problem with the bookmark for The Nautical Almanac 2003
Due to a production error, the bookmark that accompanies this almanac is, as it states, for 2002 and not for 2003. However, most of the data printed on the book mark is fixed and for these two years are identical. The only table that is different is that for the Planets in the middle of the ALTITUDE CORRECTION TABLES 10°-90°, SUN, STARS, PLANETS.

This pdf file contains the two replacement pages.

A pdf copy of the NAO Concise Sight Reduction Form on page 319 of the 2003 edition of The Nautical Almanac is available for download.
Rapid Sight Reduction Tables for Navigation available soon
This three volume publication is the successor to Sight Reduction Tables for Air Navigation and has been revised for use by navigators at sea. It is published on 8th October 2002 and more information on its contents can be found here. Sight reduction forms are also available for downloading from this page.
A problem in the binding process for The Nautical Almanac 2002
We have received three reports of missing pages from copies of The Nautical Almanac 2002. So far, feedback indicates that the affected copies were supplied to Thomas Gunn Navigation Services Limited. The missing pages are the daily pages for 2002 May 4th to 2002 June 23rd inclusive.

Please check your copy of The Nautical Almanac 2002.

If you have missing pages in the 2002 edition, please tell us. It would be of great assistance to us and our publishers, The Stationery Office (TSO), if you could tell us where and when you purchased your copy of The Nautical Almanac 2002. This will help us track down where the problem took place in the printing process and the extent of the problem.

The missing pages (~700Kb) may be downloaded from here.

HMNAO cannot supply replacement volumes. You should contact your supplier or TSO. The TSO contact is Corinne Barker. Her telephone number is 01603 695535. We apologize for any inconvenience caused.
Holidays in the United Kingdom in 2002
A Royal Proclamation has been made to the effect that there will be a public holiday on Monday, June 3rd 2002 to celebrate the Queen's Golden Jubilee. The following day will also be a public holiday, namely, the Spring Holiday. This proclamation applies to the whole of the United Kingdom. Further information may be obtained from the Department of Trade and Industry (tel. 020 7215 3853).
Relocation of HM Nautical Almanac Office
When the Particle Physics and Astronomy Research Council closed the Royal Greenwich Observatory on 31st October 1998, HM Nautical Almanac Office was transferred to the Council for the Central Laboratory of the Research Councils at Rutherford Appleton Laboratory.
HMNAO contributes to a new popular astronomy book from Dorling Kindersley
Dorling Kindersley, publishers of high-quality books and multimedia products, have just released a new title in their "Eyewitness Handbooks" series. It is entitled "Stars and Planets" and is written by Ian Ridpath, a well-known amateur astronomer, author and editor of "Norton's Star Atlas".

HM Nautical Almanac Office was commissioned in Autumn 1996 to produce all of the star charts and planet-location diagrams for "Stars and Planets", in recognition of HMNAO's long-standing reputation for accuracy and for expertise in the field of positional astronomy.

The staff of HMNAO wrote a suite of software specifically to create the star charts to the exacting requirements of Dorling Kindersley. The software was designed with flexibility in mind, to allow Dorling Kindersley to experiment with several different styles of chart. HMNAO worked closely with Dorling Kindersley for 18 months to produce the charts which appear in the new book.

The book can be recommended both to amateur astronomers and to newcomers to the splendours of the night sky.
Revision of The Astronomical Almanac
The Astronomical Almanac is to be revised. The entire contents are being reviewed item by item. Some sub-sections are outdated and will be removed completely. Others may be moved to a companion CD-ROM or web pages. Some tabular data may be replaced by a software package on the CD-ROM. The revisions will be introduced into the edition for the year 2002.