Prepare for the Water Survival 929 Test. Use flashcards, multiple choice questions, hints, and explanations. Get water safe!

Multiple Choice

Variation is caused by the difference in location between which two poles?

Variation is the difference between where a compass points (magnetic north) and where true north lies (the geographic North Pole). This happens because Earth's magnetic field is tilted relative to the rotation axis and the magnetic north pole is not fixed; it moves over time. Because these two reference points are in different places, the amount of variation depends on your location and changes as the magnetic field evolves. So the factor behind variation is the difference in location between Magnetic North Pole and True North Pole. When navigating, you adjust compass readings by the local magnetic declination to get true headings, using that the declination can be east (add) or west (subtract).

Variation is the difference between where a compass points (magnetic north) and where true north lies (the geographic North Pole). This happens because Earth's magnetic field is tilted relative to the rotation axis and the magnetic north pole is not fixed; it moves over time. Because these two reference points are in different places, the amount of variation depends on your location and changes as the magnetic field evolves. So the factor behind variation is the difference in location between Magnetic North Pole and True North Pole. When navigating, you adjust compass readings by the local magnetic declination to get true headings, using that the declination can be east (add) or west (subtract).