charting bearing and distance

[MJB]

I have four columns of information:
1) Latitude of the boat location
2) Longitude of the boat location
3) Distance of an animal from the boat
4) Bearing of the animal from the boat

Basically I have a "whale that is 350 ft at 220 degrees from a boat"

Each location of the animal is recorded with the distance and bearing from
the boat - but the boat remains in the same location

Is there any way to plot that on a chart, ideally with concentric rings of
equal distance values, to show the location of the boat (or even showing the
boat as a central point (lat and long are really not necessary at all) with
the subsequent locations of the animal in relation to that single point?

 

[smartin]

I have four columns of information:
1) Latitude of the boat location
2) Longitude of the boat location
3) Distance of an animal from the boat
4) Bearing of the animal from the boat

Basically I have a "whale that is 350 ft at 220 degrees from a boat"

Each location of the animal is recorded with the distance and bearing from
the boat - but the boat remains in the same location

Is there any way to plot that on a chart, ideally with concentric rings of
equal distance values, to show the location of the boat (or even showing the
boat as a central point (lat and long are really not necessary at all) with
the subsequent locations of the animal in relation to that single point?

With the boat at the origin, the coordinates of the whale are

x := Distance * cos(radians(Degrees))
y := Distance * sin(radians(Degrees))

Plot these on an XY chart.

Not sure what to tell you about the concentric rings... maybe you can
fake it using drawing objects.

 

[Herbert Seidenberg]

Excel 2007
Real Concentric Circles.
Fake Fish.
http://www.mediafire.com/file/2twwhtjmhmt/06_18_09a.xlsx

 

[Andy Pope]

Hi,

Sounds like a polar plot.
http://www.andypope.info/charts/polarplot.htm

Cheers
Andy