Digital Cartography

New "C-Map 4D" to change the way boaters see the world.

Saturday, October 24, 2009 by Ron Ballanti

Boaters lucky enough to be at the 2009 Fort Lauderdale Boat Show will be the first in North America to experience Jeppesen Marine’s new C-MAP 4D cartography — the latest advance in electronic charting technology that will change the way boaters see the world.

This innovative approach to electronic charting gives boaters control over their navigation solutions in ways never before possible. Using one cartridge, customers can select the coverage area and the content segment that best meet their boating needs. Customers can select the Max segment which includes all the popular features of the existing C-MAP MAX product, or they can choose the 4D segment of C-MAP 4D which includes a variety of breakthrough features, including:

“4D” Charting — Take the most advanced 3D land and ocean mapping database in the world and add the 4th dimension of time. Based on a continuous update process, C-MAP 4D gives boaters access to a personalized navigation experience with up-to-date data for safe navigation.

True View & Photos — C-MAP 4D includes a realistic navigational perspective with satellite photos and hi-resolution coastal imagery that can be overlaid on accurate and up-to-date 3-D vector data, plus thousands of extraordinary photos of popular marinas and areas of interest.

Nautical Paper Charts — For boaters who enjoy the traditional look of paper charts, C-MAP 4D delivers the exclusive ability to overlay electronic versions of raster charts onto multi-dimensional shaded relief cartography for a new boating experience.

This revolutionary charting technology will be available for use as soon as chart plotter manufacturers are able to implement it onto their units.

It's Showtime!

Friday, October 23, 2009 by Ron Ballanti

Check Out New C-MAP 4D and Other Charting Products at 2009/2010 Boat Shows.

Boat shows are a great way to catch up on all the latest gear, whether you’re looking for a new vessel, the latest electronics or the best boating and fishing accessories.

As usual, Jeppesen Marine will be out in force at some of North America’s biggest boat shows. Starting this fall and running through spring 2010, we’ll be busy showing our wares and meeting with boaters like you to help with your electronic navigation needs.

We have some big news to share with navigators across North America and around the world. The 2009 Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show will be the North American public premiere of Jeppesen Marine’s revolutionary C-MAP 4D cartography.

This advanced C-MAP cartography will change the way boaters see the world.
C-MAP 4D will be available as soon as chart plotter manufacturers are able to implement it onto their units. Visitors to the show can experience the 4th Dimension at kiosks in the Jeppesen Marine booth, which is located in the marine electronics tent, booth M21.

If you can’t catch us in Fort Lauderdale, we’ll be showing C-MAP 4D at other key boat shows, along with the entire line of Jeppesen Marine electronic charting products and accessories. Stop by and visit us. We’ll be happy to teach you about this exciting new charting technology, discuss the easiest way to update your charts (Club Jeppesen Marine) and help you with any electronic navigation questions you may have. Find us at the following shows:

Better Freshwater Fishing with Electronic Charts

Thursday, October 22, 2009 by Ron Ballanti

Most serious ocean fishermen wouldn’t dream of heading offshore without their high-tech marine electronics, especially their electronic chart plotter and digital cartography. Why?   Because they count on their marine chartplotter and electronic charts for a wealth of information that helps them find and catch more fish.

In growing numbers, freshwater anglers are also “tuning in and turning on,” spurred by increasing availability of smaller sized, affordable electronic chart plotters and fishing charts for popular freshwater lakes and rivers. For about the cost of a high-performance stainless prop, freshwater anglers can install a GPS/chart plotter and add satellite boating navigation and detailed waterway maps to their arsenal of weapons.

Today’s best marine GPS receivers can pinpoint your position to within three meters anywhere in the world, allowing you to navigate with accuracy and – most importantly – return to “fishy” areas.   And with the proliferation of inexpensive, hand-held GPS units that can fit in a tackle box, many fishermen are “steering by the numbers” to do just this.

Using an electronic chart plotter, however, adds a whole new dimension.    Electronic chart plotters add marine map technology capable of showing your boat’s position and movement over a digitized map of the lake or river’s bottom. Depending on the level of detail, this digital cartography can include submerged creek channels, drop-offs, points, brush piles, sunken islands and other structure items that are critical to fishermen.

With a little imagination, it’s easy to see how a real-time representation like this can help the freshwater anglers.   By really knowing the layout of the lake and where your boat is positioned in relation to key structure, you can spend more time fishing where the fish are. And by correlating what you see on the electronic chart plotter with information from your depth-sounder, you won’t have to wonder what’s under your boat. In fishing, knowledge is confidence. And confident anglers catch more fish.

Of course, an electronic chart plotter can only provide as much detail as is contained on the digital cartography it is running.   Companies like C-MAP have come a long way in the development of extremely detailed electronic charts for the nation’s most popular freshwater fishing areas.   The company’s MAX Lakes catalog of specialized freshwater fishing charts was developed with one purpose in mind — to help freshwater anglers catch more fish. Today, C-Map MAX Lakes fishing charts are available covering thousands of popular lakes and waterways in every U.S. state.

There are many ways savvy fishermen use this electronic chart data to their advantage. For example, walleye anglers can use their electronic chart plotters to focus and fine-tune their trolling presentations. Successful walleye trolling is based on precise boat positioning, boat speed and bait presentation, and a plotter gives you an extra high-tech tool.   If the fish are hanging along an edge or suspended over an underwater riverbed, you can position your boat precisely, track your progress on the map and make adjustments for wind and current.

Say you’re a bass fishermen, and you’re working a steep drop off a submerged point with a pig-and-jig or live bait. Same idea – you can monitor your boat’s progress in relation to the shoreline and the bottom, and make small adjustments as necessary.   And with the accuracy of today’s marine electronic GPS, you can keep working productive water by marking where you hookup and returning to this area through subsequent drifts.

These are just a few of the ways an electronic chart plotter and specialized fishing charts can make a wizard out of any freshwater fisherman.   Whether the name of your game is largemouth, walleye, trout, crappie or stripers, C-Map charts will help you catch more fish.    Visit your boat dealer or electronics store and get turned on to the world of electronic charts.

Electronic charts keep you on the right side of the line – and the law.

Thursday, October 22, 2009 by Ron Ballanti

Electronic charts keep you on the right side of the line – and the law.

Anybody who fishes ocean waters off California is aware of the state’s Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA) and what this law means to recreational anglers. In a very complex process, various groups have been working on ways to achieve the conservation goals of the act, which was passed to protect the state’s marine resources. What this will mean to the layman is a growing network of no-fishing and/or restricted fishing zones up and down California’s 840-mile coast.

Southern Californians are familiar with this already; Marine Protected Areas have been in place around the Anacapa, Santa Barbara, Santa Cruz, Santa Rosa and San Miguel Islands for several years. Closures are on the way for the rest of the state, as well as an even greater network of no-fishing zones for Southern California islands and coastline areas. Battle lines are being drawn right now, with a variety of competing marine maps vying for the approval of the state Fish and Game Commission.

However these marine maps end up coming out, it will be the fisherman’s responsibility to know and obey the law. There aren’t any floating warning signs telling you where you can or can’t fish, and printed charts with GPS boundaries of closed areas aren’t much use either.

Without a doubt, an electronic chart plotter with updated digital cartography is the best way for anglers to remain inside the law — and outside closed areas. A marine chartplotter will allow boaters to graphically see their GPS position relative to specific closed areas (most electronic GPS units allow users to customize the electronic chart display to mark general boundaries on the marine map.

Since the first closures were put in place around the Channel Islands several years ago, C-Map charts by Jeppesen Marine have had existing no-fishing zones clearly marked in red. This means that boaters can fish with confidence that they won’t accidentally cross into areas that could cost them a hefty fine. By using the electronic chart plotter’s proximity alarm feature, they can be alerted if they get too close, even if they are off the bridge and busy fishing in the cockpit.

Another advantage C-Map charts offer is the confidence to fish in close proximity to these closed areas, while remaining legally outside. These areas were selected because they are productive fish habitat — and anglers without this electronic edge are often too concerned to take their boats anywhere near them. I’ve experienced this first hand, catching quality bottom fish in an area adjacent to (but safely outside) the Carrington Reef closure area at Santa Rosa Island while other boats chose to steer clear of the whole area.

Closures like these will begin expanding up and down the state in 2010. Additional Marine Protected Areas totaling as much as 400 square miles are in the works for the Southern California region alone, depending on which marine map gets approved. Other coastal states, as well as the federal government, are also looking at similar networks of protected areas and fishing closures to manage marine resources. Don’t think this trend only applies to the Golden State.

Like it or not, more closed and restricted areas are in our future. Having a marine electronic GPS and quality electronic cartography will become increasingly important as the wide-open ocean becomes less open to anglers. This is why I’m glad that Jeppesen Marine updates its navigational charts and fishing charts at least twice each year. As a law-abiding boater and fisherman, I want to be sure I’m navigating with the most accurate electronic chart data available.

Jeppesen Marine striper showdown nets some big Cape Cod stripers.

Wednesday, October 21, 2009 by Ron Ballanti

Successful Tournament “Brings ‘Em Back Alive” for Maritime Aquarium in Norwalk, CT

Mashpee, MASS., September 25, 2009 — The Jeppesen Marine Striper Showdown September 19th saw some impressive catches weighed in at the host Osterville Anglers Club, including the winning 37.30-pound striper weighed in by Captain Bryan Pieros from Team Michael’s Bait & Tackle.

The top fish, reeled in off Block Island aboard Pieros’ 27 Contender, was big enough to win both the tournament and the 1st Place Calcutta in this American Striper Association (ASA) sanctioned event. Captain Greg Nunn of Team Hapi Daze rolled in with his 32-foot Fountain and weighed in a very respectable 29.30-pound striped bass that was good enough for 2nd Place in the tournament. Captain Bob Fitzgerald of Team Comstock Regulator placed 3rd with a 26.95-pound striper, fishing aboard his 26-foot Regulator. Captain Ken Zwirko of Team Bunker Down used his 21-foot Contender to catch and weigh in a 24.75-pound striped bass, which was good enough to land 4th Place in the tournament.

What made this event special — a side from the nice weather, good overall fishing and jumbo stripers weighed in — is that the four largest fish were brought back alive and donated to the Maritime Aquarium in Norwalk, Connecticut. The collection of these large adult stripers played an important role in the facility’s ongoing program of live exhibits and other interactive efforts to educate people about the marine life and unique environment of Long Island Sound (striped bass are a prevalent species there, as well). The fish were kept alive at sea and cared for by Jack Schneider, Curator of Animals/Director of Education for the Maritime Aquarium.

Schneider was on site with a specially equipped truck to transport the four stripers from the Osterville Anglers Club on Cape Cod to the their new home in Connecticut. Schneider reported later that the fish had survived the journey, were actively feeding and were adjusting well to their new surroundings in the Maritime Aquarium exhibit.

“We were honored to sponsor this event and to host all the activities at the beautiful waterfront facilities of the Osterville Anglers Club,” said Jeppesen Marine Business Development Manager Ken Cirillo — an avid local striper angler himself. “Fall is a great time to fish the waters off Cape Cod, as evidenced by the large winning fish brought to the scales. The fact that we were able to help the Maritime Aquarium with its striped bass collection efforts made this tournament all the more rewarding. I hope to get down there to visit them sometime soon,” added Cirillo.

For more information about Jeppesen Marine’s electronic charts for cruising, sailing and fishing, visit www.jeppesen/lightmarine. To learn more about the Maritime Aquarium, visit www.maritimeaquarium.org.

About Jeppesen Marine

Jeppesen Marine is a market-leading provider of vessel operations services and digital navigation solutions, based on worldwide vector chart data type approved to ISO19879, meteorological information and transmission technologies. Jeppesen Marine offers a wide range of navigation and operations products and services to both light and commercial marine markets. Safety-conscious boaters and operators, that range from inland and coastal towboats to SOLAS class vessels, rely on Jeppesen Marine, which is chartered with the same underlying values that launched Jeppesen in 1934 – improving safety and efficiency through innovative navigation solutions.

For 75 years, Jeppesen has made it possible for pilots and their passengers to safely and efficiently reach their destinations. Today this pioneering spirit continues as Jeppesen delivers essential information and optimization solutions to improve the efficiency of air, sea and rail operations around the globe. Jeppesen is a subsidiary of Boeing Commercial Aviation Services, a unit of Boeing Commercial Airplanes. Jeppesen corporate information is available online at jeppesen.com.

“BUG” ME, PLEASE

Tuesday, October 20, 2009 by Ron Ballanti

October Marks Opening of Southern California’s Recreational Spiny Lobster Season; Electronic Chart Plotter With Detailed Digital Cartography Helps Find The “Bugs”

When the days grow shorter and the nights grow colder in Southern California, many boaters put away their fishing rods and head out into the darkness in search of the Pacific Ocean’s ultimate night stalker – the spiny lobster. Chasing these tasty bottom dwellers — affectionately referred to as “bugs” by recreational fishermen — has become somewhat of a craze along the coast and the waters off Catalina Island. A lot more people are doing it, and it’s gotten a lot more competitive. Still, those with good marine electronics and the knowledge to use them have a definite edge.

Diving for lobsters with scuba gear has been going on for decades. It takes a special breed of person to don a wetsuit, jump into the cold winter Pacific waters and feel their way along the bottom in the dark, peering in to cracks and crevices with flashlights for these scary looking creatures. There’s a reason they’re called “spiny” lobsters — their shells (and especially their muscular tails) are covered with sharp points. And one more thing, you have to grab them with your hands. Even with diving gloves, they’re quite a handful.

For the rest of us who are not that hearty breed of sportsman, there is another method of catching lobsters that is much more civilized. The activity of lobster “hoop netting” has also been around for years, but it has seen a boom in activity over the last five years or so.

Netting lobsters involves lowering special weighted hoop nets baited with cut mackerel, bonito or other oily fish and placing them on the bottom around breakwaters, jetties, wrecks and other structure in 20 to more than 100 feet of water. Just drop your nets (think oversized basketball hoops) on the sand bottom near the structure, wait about 15 minutes and pull ‘em up. If you’re lucky, you’ll haul a net full of flopping bugs over the gunwale.

Hoop netters and divers must have a valid California sport fishing license and an approved lobster measuring device to ensure that all bugs meet the minimum size (3-1/4” from the rear edge of the eye socket to the rear end of the body shell). Each person must have his own measuring device with him.

Whether you dive or take them in a net, finding good lobster habitat is always the first step. These structure loving creatures spend the day hiding inside rockpiles, reefs, wrecks and any other kind of structure, crawling out only at night to look for food. Finding hidden structure spots can be the secret to success, particularly as the season goes on and boat pressure takes its toll. A marine chartplotter with quality electronic charts is an important tool to help anglers find and focus on structure spots. The C-Map charts I use contain valuable data on rocky outcroppings, natural and manmade reefs, shipwrecks and other bottom structure where lobsters like to hang out.

My electronic chart plotter also provides an excellent visual record of where I “net” my best lobster scores, by allowing me to mark the locations of the most productive nets. Over time, I’m able to see, for example, that one particular end of a reef produces best during an incoming tide.

Spiny lobsters don’t have claws, but they can reach upwards of 10 pounds and provide a huge, meaty tail. With a recreational season lasting more than five months (October 3, 2009 to March 17, 2010) and a daily bag limit of seven lobsters per angler, it’s easy to see why chasing lobsters is so popular. Pass the butter!

USA. Jeppesen Marine provides electronic navigation cartography for Around Americas expedition

Tuesday, October 20, 2009 by Ron Ballanti

The sailing vessel Ocean Watch, which just left New York City and is making its way to Charleston, S.C. as part of its mission to raise awareness of the effects of climate change, is relying on C-MAP MAX Pro cartography from Jeppesen Marine for safe navigation.

The Around the Americas expedition has just completed the first leg of its historic voyage – a west-to-east transit of the Northwest Passage above Alaska and Canada – and is currently sailing down the U.S. East Coast. Their route will take them down the Atlantic Coast of North and South America, around Cape Horn, then back up the Pacific Coast of both continents to its starting point in Seattle, Wash.

“The performance of the C-MAP by Jeppesen cartography on Nobeltec’s Admiral software has been impressive,” said Mark Schrader, captain of Ocean Watch and Around the Americas expedition leader. “The Northwest Passage transit was a difficult and often nerve-wracking navigation challenge. We were constantly having to recalculate routes and passage plans to deal with dynamic sea ice conditions. The highly accurate electronic charts were critical tools in our successful transit.”

“We chose Jeppesen Marine as one of our key partners because of their worldwide coverage, highly accurate and trustworthy electronic charts and feature-rich functionality of their cartography package,” added Schrader.

“We are pleased to acknowledge Ocean Watch on the successful completion of this important milestone,” said Michelle Buckalew, senior marketing manager, Jeppesen Marine. “Their safe transit of these difficult and remote waterways is a strong testimony to the skills and perseverance of the captain and crew.” VIEW ENTIRE ARTICLE

Raymarine Partners with Ranger Boats

Friday, August 14, 2009 by Richard Allen

Electronics Leader Offers Systems for Premium Saltwater Boats

MERRIMACK, N.H., July 22 /PRNewswire/ -- Raymarine, Inc., a world leader in marine electronics, today announced a new opportunity with Ranger Boats, the nation's largest manufacturer of premium fiberglass fishing boats. Raymarine electronics are now available as a factory-installed option on Ranger's Bay Ranger line of saltwater boats.

Raymarine is offering two different Flats Class electronics packages on select Bay Ranger boats, targeted at either inshore or offshore fishing enthusiasts. The optional Flats Class packages consist of either Raymarine's new C90 Widescreen Multifunction Display or the new A50D GPS-Chartplotter/Fishfinder combination unit. Both packages offer Raymarine's award-winning HD Digital fishfinding technology as well as the SIRIUS Marine Weather Service. The Flats Class electronic packages are named for the popular saltwater fishing television show of the same name hosted by Ray Van Horn and Captain C.A. Richardson, who fish exclusively on Ranger Boats with Raymarine electronics.

"We're pleased that Raymarine has chosen our legendary Bay Ranger models to platform and share this optional electronics package," said Ranger Boats President, Randy Hopper. "The spacious Bay Ranger console design works well with these units to give our family of owners even more opportunity to custom build the saltwater rig of their dreams."

Raymarine Flats Class packages are available on Bay Ranger 2000, 2200, 2310, 2400 and 2410 models.

About Ranger Boats

Ranger Boats, headquartered in Flippin, Ark., is the nation's largest manufacturer of premium fiberglass fishing boats, including a series of bass, multi-species, fish 'n play and saltwater boats. Founded in 1968 by Forrest L. Wood, Ranger Boats continues its commitment to building the highest quality, strongest performing boats on the water.

About Raymarine

Raymarine, a world leader in marine electronics, develops and manufactures the most comprehensive range of electronic equipment for the recreational boating and light commercial marine markets. Designed for high performance and ease of use, the award-winning products are available through a global network of dealers and distributors. The Raymarine product lines include radar, navigation aids, instruments, fishfinders, communications, software and systems. Raymarine plc is listed on the London Stock Exchange. For more information about Raymarine in the USA call 1-603-881-5200 or visit www.raymarine.com.

Burning Question: What Can I Do to Make My GPS Work Better?

Friday, July 17, 2009 by Richard Allen

By Cliff Kuang
WIRED MAGAZINE

Whether you're heading into the wild or down the road, it's hard to find a better electronic sidekick than a GPS. (Well, you know, other than a cell phone.) NavTeq, which provides electronic cartography for the likes of Garmin and Magellan, says GPS unit sales doubled in 2008 (after tripling in 2007). Still, even savvy gadgeteers sometimes can't locate their device's true potential.

Because a GPS has to receive a signal from space, physical impediments like skyscrapers, cliff faces, and even trees can stump it. Reception is less of an issue with the ultrasensitive chipsets in newer models, but if the walls are closing in on you, take a cue from a time when navigation systems weren't the streamlined panels they are today: Hooking up an antenna will make use of even the most tenuous celestial connection. There's a port on the back of most GPS devices for jacking in.

But don't drop $50 on extra hardware until you've made sure the problem isn't operator error. The worst time to power up your GPS is when you actually need it. Before you set out, find some wide-open sky and give your silicon guide a couple of minutes to itself. Newer units have detailed tables that tell them where the satellites will be at any time of day, anywhere in the world; they just need a single clean sync to get oriented. If you wait until you're in the woods, the receiver will have to scan the heavens with no inkling of where to start.

You'll also want to remember that a GPS is not a compass: It runs on software. Like your PC, it needs to communicate with the mother ship periodically. Vendors refresh firmware and maps on a regular basis, sometimes even daily. These updates deliver new bits of data that significantly affect your gadget's accuracy. But if you live in the boonies on a road named after your sister-wife, don't expect NavTeq to come a-knocking with its survey equipment. Fortunately, most companies make it easy to update your own maps. Usually it's as simple as plugging into your home computer, dropping a couple of pins in Google Maps, and clicking Save.

If you own a new TomTom, it's even easier. You can edit maps on the unit itself, though you might not have to: Some of the company's navis update themselves. TomTom's IQ Routes software takes data from every person who uses the company' gadgets and readjusts its assumptions about which roads you should use and how long a given route will take. It will even change its own maps.

See, it's not that hard: Your GPS may use NASA technology, but getting the most out of it isn't rocket science. view WIRED

Jeppesen Marine Provides Electronic Navigation Support for "Around the Americas" Voyage.

Tuesday, June 23, 2009 by Richard Allen

Jeppesen Marine is providing advanced navigational software and C-MAP MAX Pro cartography for the Around the Americas 24,217-nautical mile, yearlong journey.

By providing advanced navigational software and C-MAP MAX Pro cartography to the 13-month Around the Americas expedition, Jeppesen Marine is doing more than helping a small crew of adventurous sailors safely circumnavigate the Americas aboard a 64-foot sailboat. Jeppesen Marine is helping raise awareness of critical ocean health issues and educating thousands in the scientific community and general populace as the Ocean Watch visits 31 ports in 11 countries on its 24,217-nautical mile, yearlong journey.

In actuality, the Around the Americas project — a joint venture of Seattle’s Pacific Science Center, the University of Washington’s Applied Physics Lab and Sailors for the Sea — has the potential to reach millions more people worldwide through the media and online. In addition to face-to-face meetings and discussions with educators, scientists and the media at each of the scheduled port stops, voyage organizers will provide direct access to voyage updates through web-based field reports and create bi-lingual educational materials available free to classrooms, after school programs and homes. The scope and nature of this ambitious educational voyage is certain to attract widespread media exposure everywhere the Ocean Watch travels, as well as around the world. A film and book about the expedition are also planned.

The Around the Americas expedition is scheduled to depart Seattle, Washington during June 2009, and return to Seattle sometime in July 2010. The planned route will take the Ocean Watch through the Northwest Passage, down the United States East Coast, around Cape Horn and up the United States West Coast. Her crew will consist of Mark Shrader, project director and captain; David Logan, first mate; Herb McCormick, watch captain and marine journalist and David Thoreson, watch captain, cameraman and photographer. During certain legs of the journey, they will be joined onboard by various scientists, educators and other VIP guests.

“We’re honored to play a role in this important expedition and proud that our electronic charts will be used to help guide the crew of the Ocean Watch,” said Michelle Buckalew, senior marketing manager, Jeppesen Marine. “On this ambitious voyage for environmental education, these sailors will navigate remote waters rarely encountered by boaters. The group’s selection of Jeppesen Marine as electronic chart provider to support this challenging journey is testimony to the accuracy, detail and feature-rich performance of our marine cartography,” added Buckalew.

The crew will be navigating using Jeppesen Marine Nobeltec Admiral MAX Pro navigation software operating C-MAP MAX Pro cartography. This is Jeppesen Marine’s most advanced electronic chart platform for recreational marine use, with a host of specific features beneficial to the crew of the Ocean Watch. These include the ability to overlay real-time and 10-day weather forecasts onto the charts, Virtual World 3D display for detailed three-dimensional presentations of land and sea contours, and 2D and 3D satellite photo overlays. This system also provides instant online access to Notice to Mariner chart changes on a weekly basis — providing the Around the Americas sailors with the most accurate and up-to-date electronic navigation charts available.

For more information on the Around the Americas expedition, and to follow the journey as it unfolds online, visit www.pacsci.org/aroundtheamericas.

Give your Onboard Electronics a Pre-Season "Tune-Up" With C-Map PC Planner

Monday, June 22, 2009 by Ron Ballanti

You’ll Be Amazed at All You Can Do With Your PC and a MAX or NT+ Compatible Chart Plotter

Many conscientious boaters prepare for the summer boating season by giving their vessel a thorough “once over.” As they should, they carefully check their boat’s batteries, wiring and connections, monitor critical fluid levels, examine through-hull fittings and replace dirty fuel filters, to name just a few. The reasoning behind this is sound; nobody wants to start the first day of the long-awaited boating season with problems — or worse yet, a breakdown.

Boaters can achieve this same peace of mind with their marine electronics as well, provided they have a GPS/chart plotter that’s compatible with C-MAP electronic charts. Using Jeppesen Marine’s C-MAP PC Planner software and a home computer, boaters can make sure that their electronics are “tuned up” and ready to optimize boating enjoyment this summer.

Developed as a computer voyage planning tool for sailors, power cruisers and saltwater anglers, PC-Planner opens the door to accomplishing much more. Of course, it’s great way to spend time planning the navigational aspects of future vacations cruising tropical shores or trolling fish-rich waters. You can load and view your C-MAP charts on your PC and create and edit marks and routes, just as you would on your chart plotter. You can view embedded aerial photos of inlets and harbors you plan to visit, check out marina facilities and layouts and even check tide and current predictions for safer and more efficient cruising. But this just scratches the surface.

Here are some other “nuts and bolts” ways PC-Planner can help streamline your fishing and cruising time beginning with the season’s very first trip:

Fishermen, Does This Sound Familiar? You see a fish sign on the sounder, so you hit mark on the chart plotter. A little while later, you see some more signs and hit mark again. This goes on, day after day, trip after trip. Before you know it, your chart plotter display looks like one giant black spot when you zoom out. Using PC Planner during the off season makes it easy to eliminate the clutter of old and un-needed user marks, while editing and saving those that are important.

Go To BassRip, Not WPT0034. It’s always better to save a user mark with a name that explains what it is and what it means. Most boaters, however, never get time to go back and edit these generic marks with names that actually make sense and will help them later. With PC Planner, you can make use of your downtime by going through your best fishing spots, naming them and organizing them. This is also applies for anchorages, great dive spots - anywhere you want to identify for the future.

Log Important Data. Most chart plotters can be interfaced with your echo sounder’s depth output and temperature sensor, so every mark you save can also include water depth and temperature, as well as the time of day. This is great way to create a log of each fishing hot spot, along with important depth/temp information to help you establish a pattern for the bite. Saving this data for future reference and study using PC Planner can help make next fishing season more productive.

Clean Your Screen. PC-Planner is the ideal way to clean up screen clutter of all kinds. At your computer, in your home or office, you can also clear out old track marks and routes, further de-cluttering your chart plotter display and opening up needed memory. When the next boating season comes, you’ll enjoy the benefits, which also include an organized waypoint list that makes it easy to find what you want. Once you make the changes you want, you can use the optional memory card to easily transfer data between your computer and compatible chart plotter.

You’ll do it When it’s Easy. Even though you can perform most of these “tune up” functions on your chart plotter, they’re often neglected. Why? Because it’s time consuming and let’s face it, when you’re on your boat you usually have better things to do. PC-Planner makes it easy. Rather than “navigating” through keypads and on-screen alphanumeric menus to name and edit waypoints, you can use your computer’s keyboard. It’s as easy as typing a letter.

Print Out a User Point/Route Log. Once you’ve finished editing your way points, another great feature of PC Planner is that you can print out hard copies of these user points for safe keeping. Or if you want, you can “loan” them to a really good fishing buddy!

Print Out a “Chartlet.” On the subject of printing, another great utility of PC Planner is being able to print out a chart screen with your user points and routes overlaid on top of the chart. This is a great way to keep your own hard copy of your activities from past seasons’ trips or your favorite fishing spots. If you have a little experience with basic graphics programs, you can even paste favorite photos (like big fish) alongside these same user points on the hard copy.

Back Up Plan. With your computer, PC-Planner and a memory card, you can perform another very important—and often neglected—tune up service for your marine electronics. After editing and naming important waypoints — favorite fishing areas, dive spots, anchorages, etc. — you can quickly and easily back them up and store them safely. This is a also a great way to create and update a permanent digital log of your best fishing and diving spots. Backing up your user points and routes is also useful prior to updating your chart plotter’s software. Most manufacturers provide updates on a routine basis, not only to fix “bugs” but also to add new features. Contact your chart plotter manufacturer for further information. If there is a software update, you can use PC Planner to accomplish this task during the off-season.

Have Fun. Instead of being a chore, tuning-up your electronics and planning future trips with PC Planner is fun. And everybody knows that prior planning makes for a smoother trip on the water, whether fishing, cruising or sailing. Organizing your fishing spots, using your C-MAP charts to check out potential new ones, mapping out your big summer cruising vacation— all this is a great way to get ready for the year’s biggest boating adventures.

At only $149 (or $179 with memory card), PC-Planner makes a great gift and an important accessory for any avid boater. Call Jeppesen Marine’s Cape Cod, Massachusetts office at 800.424.2627 or visit www.jeppesen.com/lightmarine to learn more about PC requirements and chart plotter compatibility.

New Electronic Cartography Features Enhance Navigation Safety

Thursday, April 30, 2009 by Ron Ballanti

"Safety first" is the wise boater's mantra. So boating navigation experts at Jeppesen Marine constantly explore ways to improve safety and to enhance navigator confidence for all cruisers, sailors and fishermen. To that end, a new wave of electronic navigation systems has broken onto the scene this boating season, offering boaters innovative new capabilities and unlocking the latest powerful features and enhancements found in Jeppesen Marine C-Map MAX 09 electronic cartography.

Several innovative features that are made available through the new marine electronic systems include Jeppesen Marine's "smooth zoom" and "turbo zoom" technology. Smooth Zoom eliminates visible jumping of the electronic chart display, providing you with uniform, seamless switching of the chart scale when zooming in or out. Turbo Zoom delivers extra-fast telescoping when the electronic chart plotter's zoom key is held down. Add to these enhancements a convenient feature that instantly prepares new chart objects — land contour, depth areas, names, NavAids, buoys, beacons, rivers, roads, etc. — in the background of the electronic chart. This gives you instantaneous display and "invisible" redrawing when panning or zooming.

Jeppesen Marine also has added a new Route Check feature. This addition quickly checks your planned route for a wide range of obstacles and dangerous objects along the way. Route Check offers a user-selectable minimum depth for the vessel, and each leg of the route is rated green, yellow or red to alert boaters to potential navigational hazards they might encounter. Shallow water, rocks, obstructions, wrecks, intertidal zones, dredge areas and shoreline obstacles are among the dangers noted by Route Check.

In addition to these new features, Jeppesen Marine is adding more than 2,000 new aerial photographs of harbors and inlets nationwide to its upcoming spring 2009 release of C-Map MAX electronic charts.

For more information about Jeppesen Marine or to view compatible electronic chart plotters, visit www.Jeppesen.com/lightmarine

Boating Navigation the Old Fashioned Way

Thursday, April 23, 2009 by Richard Allen

In a fast-paced modern age, sometimes we long for simpler ways. That is part of the lure of sailing — being out on the water, in the sun, the wind ruffling my hair. This idyllic picture makes it easy to get sucked into a fantasy that the old ways were better. That is until you realize that some of the old ways were darn hard work!

Would I, for example, exchange my modern electronic cartography or GPS charts for the romantic notion of navigating by sextant? There is a delightful definition of the sextant in Beard and McKie's Sailing: The Fine Art of Getting Wet and Becoming Ill While Slowly Going Nowhere at Great Expense:

"Sextant: an entertaining, albeit expensive, devise which, together with a good atlas, is of use in introducing the boatman to many interesting areas on the earth's surface which he and his craft are not within 1,000 nautical miles of."

In sailing navigation, the sextant is used to locate where you are by measuring how far a celestial object is above the horizon. The angle of object-to-horizon and the time when you take the measurement are used to calculate a position line on a navigation chart. You first decide what celestial object to use, depending upon the time of day and what objects you can see clearly. For example, sight the sun at noon. Then, with the sextant set to zero, you slowly move the arm of the sextant down until the reflection of the object just kisses the horizon. The angle shown on the sextant's scale provides the altitude that you use along with the exact time of sighting to calculate the ship's location.

Unfortunately, there are any number of problems that can "muddy the waters," so to speak. Finding a celestial object on cloudy days or overcast nights could be one. By the same token, the horizon may not be visible. Because a sextant is a delicate instrument, its arc could be warped by changing temperatures or could be bent if dropped. Then there is the issue of mathematical aptitude that could allow errors to creep into my calculations...

Hm-m-m. Perhaps the old ways are better left to stalwart old salts who have a bit more time on their hands. I think I'll stick with my handy marine electronic GPS and relax with a cool lemonade.

Structure + Warm Water = Kingfish

Monday, April 20, 2009 by Ron Ballanti

Structure + warm water = kingfish

This formula has helped Southern Kingfish Association (SKA) pro Johnny Gay to the winner's circle more than once. Gay uses satellite sea surface temperature (SST) data in combination with electronic cartography on his Raytheon chart plotter to focus in on where temperature breaks and structure meet.

"This is where you'll probably find the bait and the fish," says Gay. "Just put the cursor on these spots and you can run right to them. You don't have to hunt so much."

Basically, temperature breaks occur when cooler sea-water currents collide with stretches of warmer water. Big schools of bait typically occupy an area like this. And where there is plentiful bait, you find opportunistic game fish looking for an easy meal. A small quick change in temperature along such a break often causes large schools of fish to congregate.

Electronic cartography

Gay also stresses the importance of using your depthsounder and electronic cartography as visual verification of depth, bottom composition and temperature to keep yourself in fish-holding areas.

Electronic Cartography Saves Time and Money in Tournament Fishing

Monday, April 20, 2009 by Ron Ballanti

There are more than 40 million anglers in the United States. That's more fishermen than there are golfers and tennis players combined. Many of these anglers enjoy participating in the excitement of tournament fishing.

In tournament fishing, time is money. Smart planning and the use of electronic cartography can save you both.

Ed Dinneen, a Division 1 Champion Southern Kingfish Association (SKA) pro who runs a Si-Tex GPS/chart plotter on his Contender 25 Open, depends on electronic cartography to help him navigate unfamiliar waters safely and quickly.

"C-Map gets me to the fish and back," says Dinneen. He uses his plotter and C-Map electronic charts to navigate through unfamiliar waters and plot an efficient course that will save him both time and fuel. "When I leave the dock, I have a good weather plan and a bad weather plan. Looking at my C-Map electronic charts and the fishing spots I've entered, I can see which areas will be easiest to run to, given the wind and sea conditions for the day."

It is just this type of smart planning that puts Ed in a direct line to his Division 1 Champion status.

Up-to-Date Charts Key to Maximizing Sailing Navigation

Monday, April 20, 2009 by Richard Allen

Like many consumer electronics products, marine GPS/chart plotters have improved dramatically over recent years. They are smaller, faster, more affordable and easier to use. These powerful sailing navigation tools are indispensable for helping cruisers, sailors and offshore fishermen to navigate safely and more efficiently.

Electronic charts — which allow cruisers to plot a course and navigate on a moving map display — also are constantly enhanced and updated to ensure they give boaters the most accurate information and visual detail possible for sailing navigation. Twice each year, Jeppesen Marine updates its C-Map electronic library with the latest navigational changes issued by hydrographic offices. These critical items include NavAid changes, new shipping lanes, shoreline changes and new restricted access areas. Numbering in the tens of thousands, these chart updates are provided to all C-Map users. New chart library releases — timed to coincide with peak spring and fall boating seasons — also provide enhancements such as current detailed C-Marina charts and NavRef aerial photos that have been added to the database.

Boaters have access to these digital cartography updates in a variety of ways with an emphasis on ease and affordability. Club Jeppesen Marine provides boaters with a free, automatic update on any C-Map MAX or NT+ chart plus a range of other money-saving benefits for a low yearly membership fee. A special partnership makes this an even better deal for MarinaLife members, who qualify for discounted membership and additional special benefits through Club Jeppesen Marine.

What's a Datum?

Tuesday, April 14, 2009 by Jim Rhodes

Let me tell you how I learned about datums.

But first, to all the sharp-eyed Latin scholars out there, yes, I did say "datums" and not "data." For some unknown reason when talking about cartography, the plural of datum is datums.

I was keeping the navigation plot on the morning watch as my ship steamed from one set of islands to another in the Caribbean. Our route plan called for us to arrive off the sea buoy just about daybreak. There was a thick morning mist across the water. As we made our approach using radar, I shifted our plot onto a larger-scale chart. Suddenly our dead-reckoning position appeared to jump a quarter mile on the new navigation chart. I discovered that the entrance buoy was on our starboard bow instead of our port bow. We reversed engines and narrowly escaped running aground.

That's when a red-faced captain explained datums to me in extremely colorful language that could only be described as "salty" and I learned an important lesson.

So what happened? The two navigational charts used different datums and the error between the two added up to more than 500 yards!

Let me explain. The datum defines the frame of reference used to create a navigation chart's coordinate grid.

The latitude and longitude coordinates of charted objects are based on hydrographic surveys. A survey starts with a control point — sometimes referred to by surveyors as the "point of beginning" or POB. Once the control point is established, the surveyors can plot the coordinates of other charted objects relative to the POB. (When I first went to sea, we did this using horizontal sextant angles and a three-arm protractor. Now it is done with highly accurate differential GPS.)

The mathematical models that the cartographer uses to depict the irregular ellipsoidal 3-D shape of the earth's surface on a 2-D surface also determine the local datum of a navigational chart. There are hundreds of local and national datums. They have names such as the North American Datum of 1927 (NAD27), the Australian Geodetic Datum of 1966 (AGD66) and so on.

When sailing in local waters, the navigational charts of the region normally use the same datum, making them consistent with one another. But as I discovered the hard way, errors can occur when shifting charts. That is why when navigators switch from one navigational chart to another, they do not simply re-plot the latitude and longitude coordinates; they re-plot the last fix using the actual compass bearings or radar ranges.

The advent of marine GPS made it possible for the first time to establish a worldwide frame of reference for reconciling local navigational chart datums. GPS positions are computed in the World Geodetic System of 1984 (WGS84) datum. When plotting GPS coordinates on paper navigtional charts, it is imperative to verify the navigational chart's datum. If it is not WGS84, you may need to apply conversion factors. Most modern GPS receivers are able to perform the conversion automatically through a datum-selection function.

Jeppesen Marine bases its electronic charts on a vector database calibrated to WGS84, but some raster charts and vector charts that were created by digitizing paper navigational charts may still be based on the local datum. So it is a good idea to check the datum on your navigational charts, just to be sure.

To learn more about datums, visit the datum home page of the U.S. National Geospatial Intelligence Agency at www.ga.gov.au/geodesy/datums/aboutdatums.jsp

Keeping Navigational Charts Up to Date

Tuesday, April 14, 2009 by Jim Rhodes

When I first went to sea some 40 years ago as a young petty officer in the U.S. Navy, one of my primary responsibilities was to keep the ship’s navigational charts and nautical publications up to date. The navigation charts encompassed a portfolio of several hundred paper charts while the nautical publications included a bookshelf crammed with navigation guidebooks like International Sailing Directions and U.S. Coast Pilots. The corrections to these were made by pen-and-ink, using information derived from the weekly Notice to Mariners. I had to maintain a card file that recorded which changes had been made to which charts — a tedious and time-consuming job!

Keeping navigational charts up to date is a never-ending process. Every week around the world hundreds of buoys, lights and daymarkers are created, destroyed, moved, renumbered and altered. Channels are dredged and sometimes rerouted. Underwater reefs and shoals are identified. New wrecks are discovered. To keep maritime navigation safe, all of these corrections must be marked on the appropriate navigation charts.

Thanks to scientific advances, many ocean-going ships are equipped with modern electronic charts display and information systems (ECDIS). However, the international Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) regulations still require these ships to carry a complete portfolio of up-to-date paper charts covering their shipping routes and ports of call. National Coast Guards vigorously enforce these regulations. Under some circumstances, ships equipped with dual redundant ECDIS may be allowed to go “paperless,” but only a handful of ships meet this requirement.

ECDIS offers mariners the advantage of being able to download data from the Notice to Mariners through a satellite link directly into the ship’s ECDIS computer. All changes required to navigation charts are incorporated automatically into the ship’s database for display on the screen. Ease and accuracy are two significant benefits of this process. Still, every week second mates on commercial ships have to sit down in the chartroom and correct paper nautical charts with pen and ink to meet international requirements and ensure their ships’ safety.

The need for up-to-date marine maps certainly is not limited to naval and commercial ships. It applies to vessels of all sizes and types, including those of the weekend sailor, powerboat cruiser and sport fisherman. Navigating on out-of-date navigational charts poses a significant danger for every vessel and its crew. It is akin to driving blind.

Bottom line? The wise sailor makes sure that he or she has the latest and most advanced electronic charts on the water. One smart solution is marine cartography from Jeppesen Marine. The company releases new cartography twice a year for its light marine products, providing the most current, accurate navigational charts available for sailing, cruising and fishing ocean or inland waters.

For more information on how charts are updated, visit the NOAA website at http://www.nauticalcharts.noaa.gov/mcd/learn_chartupdate.html

Expert Tips for Off-Shore Fishing wih C-MapNT Electronic Charts

Monday, April 13, 2009 by Ron Ballanti

In many ways, marine fishing is a lot like hunting. It doesn’t matter whether you’re after billfish, tuna, dolphin or shark; the ground rules are the same. There’s a vast array of open water out there and only a small fraction of it is likely to have the prey you want.

Before you have a chance to catch your prey, however, you have to find it. And once you manage to pinpoint a "life zone," you need to optimize your plan of attack to present your baits or lures while the feed is still on.

Fortunately, today’s anglers have an arsenal of advanced electronics at their disposal to help level the playing field. Expert offshore anglers use state-of-the-art electronic charting systems with high-detail C-MAPNT vector-based electronic charts to find and catch more fish.

Here are some tips from the experts on fishing with C-MAP electronic charts. Perhaps you can adapt some of these to your style of marine fishing and put them to use the next time you head offshore.

Fine-Tune Your Drift Patterns

Live Bait Means More Fish

Miss Britt

Focus on Structure

Track Your Success

Hit the Thermoclines

Be a Better Weed Whacker

Mark Life Zones

Coordinate with Friends

Try putting some or all of these tips to good use the next time you go offshore fishing. You will certainly uncover new strategies of your own as you discover the power of fishing with C-MAP electronic charts.

C-MAP electronic charts by Jeppesen Marine are the choice of 17 North American based chart plotter manufacturers and more than 50 worldwide manufacturers. C-MAP’s award-winning, vector-based NT cartography is the system preferred worldwide by professional anglers and knowledgeable boaters. For more information on how Jeppesen’s C-MAP can help you catch more fish, contact Jeppesen Marine toll free at 1-800-424-2627. Or visit C-MAP by Jeppesen online at www.jeppesen.com/marine/on-the-water.jsp

General Bathymetric Chart of the Oceans

Tuesday, March 31, 2009 by Ron Ballanti

The General Bathymetric Chart of the Oceans (GEBCO) consists of an international group of experts who work on the development of a range of bathymetric data sets and data products, including gridded bathymetric data sets, the GEBCO Digital Atlas, the GEBCO world map and the GEBCO Gazetteer of Undersea Feature Names.

We are involved in training a new generation of scientists in ocean bathymetry through the Nippon Foundation/GEBCO Training Project. View entire article