Written by: Gabriella Alodia
On the morning of 25 September 2024, a guest lecture on sun azimuth was delivered by Mr. Yudovan Vidyan of PT. Bintang Subsea Indonesia and Mr. Mustafa Ihsan Iraqi, a freelance hydrographic surveyor, to the GD4111 Offshore Positioning course participants. A lecture on sun azimuth is deemed important as when a survey is carried out offshore, defining the true north become a challenge as no known positions exist in the middle of the ocean. “I asked a new graduate if he still remember the concepts of sun azimuth, he said he knew nothing about it. Meanwhile, we still use it a lot, especially on jobs where we need to determine the true heading of a jack-up rig or a barge where the starting point itself is already in the middle of the ocean. We need to be sure if our heading sensor is correct,” said Mr. Yudovan Vidyan during the guest lecture session.
The guest lecture session was continued directly with a practical session while the sun is still visible and not too close to the zenith. The practical session was carried out in Lapangan Seni Rupa ITB and we were blessed with a clear sky – quite uncommon during the start of a raining season! Although the participants were still getting used to the measurement, a complete understanding on how the measurement would be useful was obtained after entering all the observed parameters to a designated website that would enable them to determine the sun’s azimuth during their time of observation.
Mr. Mustafa delivering instructions
Mr. Yudovan delivering instructions
We hope that the guest lecture was useful for the students and thank you Mr. Yudovan and Mr. Mustafa for giving your precious time to share your knowledge and experiences with us!
GD4111 Offshore Positioning course!