Having regard to this last proposition (Euclid III., 21), it will be observed that in the case of Fig. 37 it would not have been possible to locate the point C by reading the angle A C B alone, as such point might be amywhere on the circumference of a circle of which A B was the chord. The usual and more accurate method of determining the position of a floating object from the object, itself, or from a boat alongside, is by taking angles with a sextant, or box-sextant, between three fixed points on shore in two operations. Let A B C, Fig. 41, be the three fixed points on shore, the positions of which are measured and recorded upon an ordnance map, or checked if they are already there. Let D be the floating object, the position of which is required to be located, and let the observed angles from the object be A D B 30° and B D C 45°. Then on the map join A B and B C, from A and B set off angles = 90 - 30 = 60°, and they will intersect at point E, which will be the centre of a circle, which must be drawn, with radius E A. The circle will pass through A B, and the point D will be somewhere on its circumference. Then from B and C set off angles = 90-45 = 45°, which will intersect at point F, which will be the centre of a circle of radius F B, which will pass through points B C, and point D will be somewhere on the circumference of this circle also; therefore the intersection of the two circles at D fixes that point on the map. It will be observed that the three interior angles in the triangle A B E are together equal to two right angles (Euclid I. 32), therefore the angle A E B = 180 - 2 x (90 - 30) = 600, so that the angle A E B is double the angle A D B (Euclid III., 20), and that as the angles subtending a given chord from any point of the circumference are equal (Euclid III, 21), the point that is common to the two circumferences is the required point. When point D is inked in, the construction lines are rubbed out ready for plotting the observations from the next position. When the floating point is out of range of A, a new fixed point will be required on shore beyond C, so that B, C, and the new point will be used together. Another approximate method which may sometimes be employed is to take a point on a piece of tracing paper and draw from it three lines of unlimited length, which shall form the two observed angles. If, now, this piece of paper is moved about on top of the ordnance map until each of the three lines passes through the corresponding fixed points on shore, then the point from which the lines radiate will represent the position of the boat. [Illustration: Fig. 41. Geometrical Diagram for Locating Observation Point Afloat.]