USCG Exam PracticePlotting with variation and deviation (T-V-M-D-C)
Variation printed inside a chart's compass rose represents the angle between which two references?
- A. Magnetic north and the vessel's compass north
- ✓ True north and magnetic north at that locationCorrect
- C. True north and the vessel's compass north
- D. Magnetic north and grid north
Why B is correct
Variation is defined as the angle between true north and magnetic north at a given place. It is a property of the Earth's magnetic field at that location, not of the vessel. Deviation, not variation, accounts for the vessel's own magnetism.
Cited:Bowditch Ch. 6 §601