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Definitions

celestial navigation

NOUN

navigation by observing the position of stars and planets

Synonyms

WEAK

astro-inertial guidance astronavigation celestial guidance celo-navigation

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.

She also knows celestial navigation and how to plot a course.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 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