Chartwork

Chartwork is the practice of creating, interpreting, and using navigational charts for maritime navigation. It encompasses the preparation of voyage plans on nautical charts, marking courses, waypoints, depths, hazards, and navigational aids, and the calculation of a vessel's position and estimated times of arrival during a voyage.

This work includes plotting courses with bearings and distances, determining fixes by the intersection of lines of position, performing dead reckoning, and incorporating celestial sightings or electronic fixes. Chartwork also considers tidal streams, currents, magnetic variation, and the application of the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea.

Historically conducted on paper charts with tools such as dividers, protractors, and parallel rulers, chartwork now often integrates electronic charting systems and digital chart display; however, the fundamental tasks—accurate plotting, cross-checking positions, and validating routes against charted information—remain essential.

In hydrographic surveying and chart production, chartwork involves organizing survey data into chart-ready formats, compiling feature inventories, ensuring correct chart scales, symbolization, and metadata so that the final chart supports safe navigation.

A navigator typically learns chartwork as part of basic seamanship and navigation training; it supports situational awareness, backup in case of electronic failures, and the interpretation of charted information during planning and execution of voyages.