L04 - Directions and Bearings

Directions and Bearings

Learning Intentions

• I can state a direction and an opposite direction.
• I can use bearings with trigonometry.

Information

• Bearings begin on the North cardinal direction.
• It can be visualised using something similar to a cartesian plane, with four quadrants. (It’s also like a compass!)

True Bearings

• True bearings are bearings that begin from North and go from .
• For example, if a point was placed from its origin, it would be from O (origin).
• You can find a visualisation in the summary notes here.

Compass Bearings

Compass Bearings

• To master compass bearings, you can remember the following information.
  • Visualise a cartesian plane, with four quadrants going clockwise.
    • In Quadrant 1, the compass bearing would be .
    • In Quadrant 2, the compass bearing would be .
    • In Quadrant 3, the compass bearing would be .
    • In Quadrant 4, the compass bearing would be .
    • This is due to the fact that we determine the first direction through North and South, then we determine the last direction from East or West, depending on where it’s adjacent to.
  • To find , you begin from North or South and measure the angle counter-clockwise.
  • For example, if the true bearing is , then the compass bearing would be .

Other Information

• Bearings are heavily dependent on wording and terminology.
• If a question states to find the bearing of A from O, you will find it FROM O. This applies to vice versa.