Leading Lights & their importance?
LEADING LIGHTS
Quite often, at the entrance or approaches to the harbour, two lights of different characteristics are erected, some distance apart, in such a manner that a mariner entering the harbour correctly and properly, would see them in one line. These are called Leading Lights.
The leading lights indicate to the navigator that the ship lies on a line joining the two lights and is thus entering the harbour or port correctly, clear of all dangers to navigation.
IMPORTANCE OF THE LEADING LIGHTS:
1) These indicate the safe passage of the ship in a channel.
2) Help in fixing the position of the ship.
(3) These help the navigator in finding the compass error. The (actual) true transit bearing of the two leading lights is read off the chart and the compass bearing of the two lights, when in transit is taken, and the difference between the two bearings is the compass error.