Magnetic Variation SKYbrary Aviation Safety

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Magnetic Variation
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Declination
Definition
The angular difference, in the horizontal

plane, between true north and magnetic
north at a particular place.
Discussion
In his book, The American Practical Navigator,

Nathanial Bowditch defined variation as “the
angle between the magnetic and geographic
meridians at any place, expressed in degrees
and minutes east or west to indicate the
direction of magnetic north from true north."
In more practical terms, magnetic variation,
more often referred to as declination in non-
aviation / non-nautical contexts, is the angle
on the horizontal plane between magnetic
north and true north. This angle varies with
position on the Earth's surface and it changes
over time, at varying rates in different
locations. If a compass at your location is
pointing to the right of true north, declination
is positive or east, and if it points to the left of
true north, declination is negative or west.
The needle of a magnetic compass will point

roughly at the North Geographic Pole over
much of the Earth's surface. However, there
are few places where a compass needle will
point exactly north because of the complex
shape of the Earth's magnetic field. The
compass aligns with the horizontal
component of the magnetic field in a
direction called magnetic north. True north,
on the other hand, is the direction from a
given location to the North Geographic Pole.
While many people believe that a compass
needle points directly at the North Magnetic
Pole, this is not strictly true as the horizontal
component of the magnetic field changes
with position. Were one to follow the compass
needle, they would eventually arrive at the
North Magnetic Pole, but not by the most
direct route. To further complicate the issue,
the magnetic poles (north and south) are not
fixed in position but migrate over time and
the Earth's magnetic fields fluctuate due to
extra-terrestrial magnetic storms. This map
of Historical Magnetic Declination, located on
the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA) website, depicts the
changes in declination and movement of the
north and south magnetic poles over the past
400 years.
Terminology
The terms variation and declination are both

used to describe the angle between magnetic
north and true north. The term deviation is
also used on occasion. These three terms are
explained as follows:
Declination - This term, sometimes referred

to as "magnetic declination", is preferred by
those who study the Earth's magnetic field.
It is also the term most commonly used by
land navigators, geocaching enthusiasts
and surveyors.
Variation - This term is preferred by
mariners and pilots because the word
"declination" also has a Celestial
Navigation usage; that is the angle of a star
or planet above the celestial equator.
Deviation - When mounted in an aircraft or
a ship, a compass is not only influenced by
the Earth's magnetic field, but by the
magnetism of the iron used in the
FEEDBACK
construction of the vehicle as well. This

causes a compass error referred to as
"deviation". Many people incorrectly use
deviation when they actually mean
declination.
An isogonic line is a line over the surface of

the earth upon which magnetic declination is
constant. An agonic line is an isogonic line
upon which the declination is zero.
Heading Relationships
When discussing measurement of direction in

an aircraft, there are three different headings
that come into play. These are:
Compass heading - the bearing presented

on a basic (alcohol or dry) magnetic
compass
Magnetic heading - compass heading
corrected for compass deviation
True heading - magnetic heading corrected
for variation (declination)
The standby compass of many aircraft can be

corrected for deviation by adjusting small
magnets mounted within the casing of the
instrument during a process referred to as a
"compass swing". If there is no capability for
such adjustment, a compass deviation card,
which indicates the compass heading that
must be flown to achieve a desired magnetic
heading, will normally be mounted near the
instrument. Primary directional instruments
are almost universally able to be adjusted to
eliminate deviation.
True heading can be calculated from

magnetic heading by adjusting for variation.
As variation is directional, the rhymes
"variation east, magnetic least" and "variation
west, magnetic best" can be used as a
memory aid to ensure variation is applied
correctly.
Navigation
Variation is an important component when

considering the topic of aircraft navigation.
Whilst runway headings, AWOS, ATIS and
tower reported winds, VOR alignment,
approach and airway tracks are all presented
referenced to magnetic north, VFR
charts, TAF, METAR and enroute winds are
referenced to true north. Pilots must,
therefore, understand the relationship
between true north and magnetic north,
know where to obtain relevant variation
values and know how to apply that variation
correctly to convert from one directional
reference to the other.
Related Articles
Gyromagnetic Compass
Celestial Navigation
Magnetic Dip
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The angular difference, in the horizontal

In his book, The American Practical Navigator,

The needle of a magnetic compass will point

The terms variation and declination are both

Declination - This term, sometimes referred

construction of the vehicle as well. This

An isogonic line is a line over the surface of

When discussing measurement of direction in

Compass heading - the bearing presented

The standby compass of many aircraft can be

True heading can be calculated from

Variation is an important component when

SAFETY KNOWLEDGE CONTRIBUTED BY:

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