NorthStar 972 User manual

Northstar 972
Quickstart Guide
and
Reference Manual
Revision B

Attention Installers:
This processor module must be handled with reasonable care and protected from the following;
•Moisture: Do not mount this processor in unprotected areas of the vessel having moisture.
•Vibration and shock: Use of the supplied shock/vibration mount is a mandatory part of the
installation. Only mount this unit in a horizontal position with adequate space for ventilation,
maintenance and for field service removal. Rough handling during removal or installation can
cause premature failure of internal components.
•Radar interference: Do not install the processor or cabling in areas exposed to interference from
any radar. The processor should be mounted as far as possible below any source of radar
interference.
Flybridge installations of the processor are not recommended and should be avoided. Installations
in these areas require special provisions for shielding and the installation design must provide total
protection from any moisture.
Problems caused by moisture, vibration and radar interference are not covered by warranty. Refer
to the installation manual P/N GM972IM for additional installation, troubleshooting and warranty
information.
For advice regarding equipment placement, please consult with an authorized Northstar Servicing
Dealer before beginning the installation.
To locate a Northstar Servicing Dealer near you call 978-897-6600

Getting Started . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Welcome to the Northstar 972. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Using this manual. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Networking the 972. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Interfacing the 972. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Maintaining the 972 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Technical support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Electronic Charts and the 972 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Purchasing charts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Quickstart Guide
Northstar 972 Quickstart Guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Turning the 972 on and off . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Introducing the display screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Introducing the controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Detailed chart data. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Displaying the chart screen. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Displaying the chart screen. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Using demo mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Displaying numeric data on the chart screen. . . . . . . 19
Displaying numeric data on the position screen . . . . 20
Going immediately to a quick waypoint. . . . . . . . . . . 21
Radar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
The echo sounder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Split function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
The STAR key: alarms, TideTrack and setup . . . . . . . 24
SAVE and Man Overboard (MOB). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Reference Sections
1 Using the Chart Screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Using electronic charts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Zooming in and out . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Using the cursor on the chart screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Comparing vessel and browse modes . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Rotating the chart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Setting up the chart screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Using the course predictor line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Using the distance and bearing calculator. . . . . . . . . . 38
2 3D maps. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Introduction to 3D images . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Configuring the screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Flying around the vessel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
3 Position coordinates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Displaying position, COG, and speed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
Using GPS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
Position screen options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Viewing GPS satellite status . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Using Phantom Loran . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
4 Navigating to Waypoints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Introducing waypoints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
Designating a waypoint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
Steering to a waypoint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
The course predictor line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
Navigating along routes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
Restarting the track line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Contents

The NAVLOG screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
5 Creating waypoints and routes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Displaying waypoints. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
Creating new waypoints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
Creating avoidance-area waypoints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
Editing waypoints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Introducing routes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
Creating a route from the chart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
Creating routes from a list of waypoints . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Saving a route as you travel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
Editing a route. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Transferring waypoints/routes to other units. . . . . . . 80
Transferring waypoints to and from a PC. . . . . . . . . . 83
6 Radar. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
How radar works . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
Displaying radar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
Turning the radar transmitter on and off . . . . . . . . . . 87
Overlaying radar on the chart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
Changing radar scale and rotation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
Using the radar’s main menu keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
Using the Adjustment keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
Using the Markers keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Radar cursor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96
MARPA targets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96
7 Echo sounding. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
Welcome to the Northstar Echo Sounder . . . . . . . . . 103
Displaying the echo sounder’s picture . . . . . . . . . . . 106
Using automatic mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Changing the frequency of echoes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
Zooming in and out . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
Echo Sounder setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
The picture menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
Changing the depth settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116
Using the MORE key . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
Setting the ECHO screen data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
Viewing past echoes using SoundTrac. . . . . . . . . . . . 120
Echo sounding alarms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
8 Video . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127
Video sources. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
Displaying video . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
9 Alarms and TideTrack . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
Alarms. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
TideTrack™ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
10 Networking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141
General information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
Restrictions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
11 Setup. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
972 configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
Navigation options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147
Changing your port settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
Setting up the echosounder. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
Installing software updates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
Diagnostics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152
Changing the time zone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153
Appendix A — Datum list . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155
Appendix B — Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161

1
Reference Manual Revision B
Getting Started
Welcome to the Northstar 972. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Using this manual . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Maintaining the 972. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Interfacing the 972. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Technical support. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Electronic Charts and the 972. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Purchasing charts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
This chapter introduces this manual and explains a few things you should know to keep
your Northstar 972 in top operating condition.

2Getting Started
Welcome to the Northstar 972 Northstar 972
Welcome to the Northstar 972
Congratulations on your purchase of the
Northstar 972 Integrated Navigation
System! The 972 is a full-featured 3D color
GPS/vector charting system — easy to use,
but meeting your marine navigation needs
in a comprehensive, logical manner.
Optional Northstar radar and fish finding
modules round out the 972’s capabilities.
The 972 enhances GPS with the Wide Area
Augmentation System (WAAS) for superb
accuracy, and offers a high-resolution
full-color screen with Jeppesen Marine and
BSB cartography.
Major functions are accessed with a single
keypress. By reducing the attention
required to navigate, you can devote more
time to simply enjoying your trip.
For information on installing, interfacing,
and troubleshooting the 972, please see
the Northstar 972 Installation Manual (part
number GM972IM) or contact your local
authorized Northstar dealer.
Using this manual
This manual is divided into two main
sections:
•The Quickstart Guide begins on page 9
and has all the basic information you
need to operate the 972.Be sure to read
this section as you start using the unit.
•A Reference Section starts on page 27.
Use this when you need more
information about any of the unit’s
functions — you’ll find answers here to
any questions about getting the most
from your 972.
Check the mini table of contents at the
beginning of each chapter to quickly locate
a topic you need help with.
It’s best to read this manual with the 972
set up and running so you can try out the
various functions and see the results.
Conventions
This manual uses certain conventions to
provide a consistent means of recognizing
specific information, as follows:
The 972 has several
requirements that must
be met to ensure safe
and proper operation.
Installation and interfac-
ing of the 972 should be
handled by a marine
technician using the
guidelines found in the
Northstar 972 Installa-
tion Manual.

3
Getting Started
Networking the 972
Reference Manual Revision B
•is the universal caution symbol for
caution and warning information
related to your personal safety or
possible damage to the system. The
CAUTION and WARNING notes contain
critical information—please read them!
•The phrase “Press a key” means push
briefly and release, unless otherwise
specified. “Press and Hold” means to
hold the key until the desired result
occurs.
•Text written like “CHART” generally
refers to named keys on the 972’s front
panel.
•Text written like “More info” generally
refers to the 972’s menu keys at the
right side of the screen.
•Whenever this manual tells you to
press ENTER to perform a function, you
can press CLEAR instead if you decide
not to perform that function. These
keys are abbreviated ENT and CLR on
the 972.
Networking the 972
Northstar’s networking technology lets you
connect two or more 972 units in order to
share navigation data (including radar and
sounder data) and all waypoints and routes
between the units. The system can be
operated from any connected unit, and all
changes to routes and waypoints are
reflected on all the networked units.
Networking is fully automatic on the 972 —
no special steps are necessary
One display unit is designated as the
master, and all others as slaves. The only
restrictions on networking are the
following:
•there must be one and only one master
unit operating in a network
•all units must have the same software
version.
If, for example, a slave unit is turned on
before the master, a message is displayed
reminding you to turn on the master unit
before using the slave. In case the master
unit is not available (removed for service,
for example), brief instructions show how
to temporarily convert a slave into a master
unit.
For details on networking, see Networking,
starting on page 141.

4Getting Started
Interfacing the 972 Northstar 972
Interfacing the 972
The 972 can be connected to a wide
variety of compatible marine devices,
including Northstar’s echo sounder and
radar. A qualified marine electronics tech-
nician should perform these installations.
For details, contact your local authorized
Northstar dealer.
Maintaining the 972
Basic maintenance
To help retain the 972’s best possible
performance, Northstar recommends the
following:
•keep fingerprints off the display screen
(remove any prints with a lens cleaning
cloth)
•remove dirt and grime using a soft
cloth and Windex or soap and water
•don’t scratch the display by wiping a
sandy or salty cloth across it
•use the 972’s protective plastic
sunshield when not in use (excessive
heat from the sun can cause damage)
•don’t open the 972 case—there aren’t
any user-serviceable parts inside
•always keep the rear connectors’ plastic
caps on when they are not in use (the
connectors are not waterproof unless
covered)
Cleaning the display screen
Be careful when cleaning the glass window
covering the display screen. Although the
window is scratch-resistant, you may
damage the anti-reflective coating if you
use a dry cloth to wipe dirt off. Always use
a damp cloth with plenty of water to
remove salt or dirt. To remove any oil or
grease on the screen, use a clean, dry
microfiber-type lens cleaning cloth or a
small amount of window cleaner.
Avoid touching the window with your
fingers. The natural oils from your hand
will temporarily affect the characteristics of
the screen and cause your fingerprints to
appear as bright reflections. Fingerprints
will disappear when you clean the screen
as described in the previous paragraph.
Pre-packaged moist
towellettes (especially
those containing a small
amount of alcohol) are
excellent for cleaning
the display window. You
might want to keep a
supply on hand to wipe
off fingerprints and other
smudges.

5
Getting Started
Technical support
Reference Manual Revision B
Technical support
Northstar products are manufactured and
serviced by BNT Marine Electronics.
If you need technical support, or have any
other questions after you’ve followed the
instructions in this manual, you can
contact the factory as follows:
by Telephone:
978/897-6600 or 800/628-4487
by E-mail:
Service: [email protected]
Sales: [email protected]
by Fax:
Service: 978/897-1595
Sales: 978/897-7241
by U.S. mail:
Northstar
30 Sudbury Road
Acton, MA 01720 USA
Additional information is available at
Northstar’s website:
www.NorthstarNav.com
Hearing from you
Your feedback is important and helps
ensure that this manual is a valuable
resource for all 972 users. Send your ques-
tions, comments, or suggestions about this
manual to:
[e-mail]
Service and repair
In case of a 972 operating problem, check
all interconnecting cables and fuses. If you
continue to have problems, contact your
dealer or the factory for additional assis-
tance. If required, you can return the 972
to the factory for diagnosis and repair.
When calling, be sure to have your 972
serial number and software revision avail-
able. In describing a problem, be as
complete and accurate as possible. Before
returning the 972 for repair, you may want
to save your waypoints and routes. If the
unit is properly networked to another 972
display, a copy of your waypoints and
routes is already saved in the other unit.
You can also transfer data to a Northstar
6000 series or older navigator or to a PC as
described on pages 80 and 83.

6Getting Started
Electronic Charts and the 972 Northstar 972
NOTE:
To prevent delays, it’s critical that you first
obtain a Return Materials Authorization
(RMA) number from our Service
Department before returning your 972.
Shipments to BNT Marine Electronics
should be made to the following address:
Northstar Service Department
30 Sudbury Road
Acton, MA 01720
If you have special overnight or
second-day shipping requirements, please
call for turnaround time and freight costs
before you ship your 972.
Electronic Charts and the 972
One of the 972’s unique features is the
ability to display both raster and vector
charts. In split screen mode, you can even
display a raster chart and a vector chart
side by side. This is a great way to under-
stand the differences and similarities
between the two.
Raster Charts
Raster charts are literally digital scans of
paper charts. In most cases, these paper
charts are issued by the local government.
The scans, like digital photos, are a matrix
of dots. The challenge in raster charts —
the earth is round (3D) and the chart is flat
(2D) — is to be able to determine the
precise latitude and longitude of each dot
at any zoom level.
One of the biggest benefits of raster charts
is their appearance – it is identical to the
paper charts. It’s like having the paper
chart on the screen.
This is also one of the drawbacks to raster
charts. Since the chart is just a matrix of
dots, the chart plotter cannot tell the differ-
ence between a navaid and a depth
sounding. Furthermore, they really only
look great at one particular zoom level.
Zooming in or out from that level compro-
mises display quality.
Vector Charts
Vector charts, on the other hand, are
drawn on the screen from a set of rules
specific to each chart — instead of a digi-
tized photo of the chart, it’s a
mathematical description of the chart. The
chart plotter interprets the description and
then draws (renders) the chart. Whatever
the screen resolution or zoom level, they
always look great. Rather than being a

7
Getting Started
Purchasing charts
Reference Manual Revision B
matrix of dots, the vector chart is a series
of lines and shapes. The shapes are then
filled in with colors.
One of the biggest benefits of vector charts
is that navaids and other points of interest
are specified in the chart data, so the
plotter can highlight navaids, and do intel-
ligent things when the vessel or the cursor
gets near a navaid. This increased flexi-
bility is virtually boundless in the power it
offers.
Another advantage is the ability to “layer”
the data. The user can shut off certain
layers so the display is less cluttered.
One of the drawbacks of vector charts has
been that they don’t look identical to the
raster charts. With advances in technolo-
gies – both in cartography and marine
electronics – this disadvantage is
disappearing.
See page 28 for more on charts in the 972.
Purchasing charts
Purchasing charts for your 972 is quick
and easy, because all available charts are
already stored on a hard disk drive in its
processor module. There’s no waiting for
delivery or visits to dealers — you only
need to purchase a chart permit to use
them.
To purchase additional charts:
1. Press the STAR key several times to display
the Passport OnBoard screen.
2. Note the Passport OnBoard serial number,
and contact Jeppesen Marine by telephone or
the Internet to purchase the chart permits you
need.
3. Enter the chart permit and press ENTER.
4. Wait for the chart to be activated (up to five
minutes).
In addition, a menu key for purchasing
charts is displayed on the chart screen,
whenever there are additional charts that
you have not purchased, at the current
vessel position.
Where to purchase
Passport Charts
You may purchase charts by
telephone at:
800 272 6205
or online at
www.PassportOnBoard.com

8Getting Started
Purchasing charts Northstar 972

9
Quickstart Guide Revision B - Review
Northstar 972 Quickstart Guide
Turning the 972 on and off . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Displaying the chart screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Using demo mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Displaying numeric data on the chart screen . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Displaying numeric data on the position screen . . . . . . . . . 20
Going immediately to a quick waypoint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Radar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
The echo sounder. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Split function. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
The STAR key: alarms, TideTrack and setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
SAVE and Man Overboard (MOB). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
This section gives an overview of each of the 972 major functions and the basic informa-
tion you need to begin using them.
We suggest you read this section carefully as you first use the 972 and then refer to the
following Reference Sections, as necessary, to answer any questions you may have.

10 Northstar 972
Function KeysPower Key Soft Keys STAR Key
SPLIT
PWR
3D
CHART STEER RADAR VIDEO
POSITION SOUNDER
IN
OUT
BRT
DIM
WAYPTS
ROUTES
SAVE
MOB
Figure 1: 972 controls

11
Turning the 972 on and off
Quickstart Guide Revision B
Turning the 972 on and off
Turning the 972 on
To turn the 972 on, gently and briefly press
the PWR key. (See Figure 1 on page 10 for a
picture of the controls.)
During the startup sequence, the 972
beeps and displays its start-up screen, and
then performs a series of self-tests to check
its critical components and functions. Any
startup issues are indicated by a double
asterisk on the screen.
Next, a message warns against relying on
the 972 chart cartography as the only
means of safe navigation. Acknowledge the
warning message by pressing the CHART
key.
Now you’re ready to get underway with
your 972!
If this 972 was recently used at or near its
present location, it will usually be ready to
navigate within one minute after it is turned
on.
Turning the 972 off
To turn the 972 off, press and hold the
PWR key until the screen goes dark. Allow
up to 30 seconds for the black box to
power down.
Introducing the display screen
Adjusting the brightness
To adjust the screen’s brightness press the
BRT or DIM key.
If the 972 becomes too hot due to high
ambient temperature and strong sunlight,
the display screen may automatically dim
to prevent overheating. You can tempo-
rarily override the auto-dim function at
any time just by increasing the brightness.
The 972 may dim again to avoid exceeding
the maximum internal temperature.
Special display windows
Occasionally, the 972 needs to tell you
something or ask permission to do some-
thing. When this happens, an information
or question window appears on the screen.
This window may contain an alarm icon, or
CAUTION!
Use caution when navi-
gating with electronic
charts. Although every
effort has been made to
ensure that the data the
972 uses is as close as
possible to paper charts,
errors and omissions are
inevitable. The captain is
responsible for
cross-checking the 972
against other sources of
navigation data.

12 Introducing the controls Northstar 972
an INFO icon or a large question mark
along with a message for you to read.
For more on alarms, see ”Displaying alarm
messages” starting on page 132.
Question windows
A question window appears
when the 972 needs a
response from you. Respond to a question
window by pressing the ENTER key to
answer yes, or the CLEAR key to answer no.
Most of the other keys, including the
function keys, are temporarily inactive
while the 972 displays a question window.
Introducing the controls
Feel free to try any of the 972’s controls!
You can’t hurt anything, and you’ll only
learn more about how to use the 972 more
efficiently. The 972 always asks you to
verify what you’re doing before it changes
or deletes information. You’ll be asked to
confirm your action before anything
happens that may affect the 972’s opera-
tion. You can always press CLEAR to cancel
a function if you change your mind.
Function keys
Figure 1 on page 10 illustrates the loca-
tions of the 972’s controls.
The seven keys below the screen access
the unit’s major functions. These are
CHART, POSITION, STEER and 3D, and the
optional functions RADAR, SOUNDER and
VIDEO. Press one at any time to instantly
display that function on the full screen,
then use the menu keys at the right edge
of the screen to control the function.
The WAYPTS/ROUTES key accesses the
972’s database of stored position
information.
The STAR key accesses the alarm screen
and miscellaneous functions including
TideTrack and setup commands.
Using ENTER and CLEAR

13
Detailed chart data
Quickstart Guide Revision B
Split screen feature
Press the SPLIT key to split the screen into
two or more sections, each with a different
function displayed. See page 23 for more
information.
Menu keys
The six round keys at the right of the
screen take on different functions,
depending on the screen displayed. Each
active key is labeled on the screen.
You can press CLEAR to hide the labels
and display more data on the Chart, 3D, Split,
Sounder and Video screens. To show the
labels again, press any menu key. On the
Chart screen, you can also hide the info bar
(see Displaying numeric data on the chart
screen, on page 19) by pressing CLEAR a
second time, while the menu keys are
hidden.
Setting options
Installation and setup options are available
by pressing the STAR key several times to
display the Options/Service Info screen. This is
where you set options for system settings
such as Service Options, Port Setup,
Software Update, etc.
Function options
Begin on the screen whose options you
want to change. Then press and hold that
function key for about a second. A screen
showing the options for that function will
be displayed.
Use the cursor pad to select an item, press
Edit, press the cursor pad to choose the
desired setting, and then press ENTER. Any
settings you change will apply to the entire
system, not just the function in use.
Detailed chart data
You can purchase chart permits for any
area in the world directly from Jeppesen
Marine. Visit www.PassportOnBoard.com
for details on the simple procedure and to
obtain the permits. Or, see your marine
dealer.
All available charts are already stored
within your 972, and you can activate
chart, current and tide data at any time by
simply obtaining and entering a permit
code.

14 Displaying the chart screen Northstar 972
Displaying available charts
Press the STAR key repeatedly until the
Passport OnBoard screen appears. On this
screen, you can see the activated chart
regions and enter additional chart permits.
Displaying the chart screen
After the 972 completes its start-up
sequence, press the CHART function key to
acknowledge the warning message and
display the Chart screen.
You’ll see your present position repre-
sented by a red vessel symbol in the center
of the chart. If you’re not receiving GPS
signals, you can use Demo Mode, as
described on page 19.
World Folio out of date
warnings
When the world folio on
your system reaches 13
months old, you will see
a warning reminding you
to update it.
Safe mariners always
use up-to-date charts
and information.
Chart Setup/status screen

15
Displaying the chart screen
Quickstart Guide Revision B
Chart screen

16 Displaying the chart screen Northstar 972
The 972’s Chart screen displays your
vessel’s present position (or any position
you designate with the cursor pad) in
relation to land masses, nav aids, and any
waypoints and routes you have entered. As
you navigate, your vessel remains
stationary on the Chart screen, and the
chart moves underneath your vessel.
Clearing a GPS or WAAS alarm
If the 972 isn’t able to obtain a position
from GPS within three minutes, you’ll see a
flashing NO GPS alarm icon on the right
side of the screen. This means the 972 has
an alarm message that needs your
acknowledgement: Press the STAR function
key to display the Alarms screen.
The alarm message NO GPS POSITION
FIX is shown in the Recent Alarms box.
This message advises you that the 972 is
still in the process of acquiring satellite
information necessary for displaying a
position fix.
The word NEW in the upper right corner of
the screen tells you this message hasn’t yet
been acknowledged. To acknowledge this
or any message alarm, press the Clear
alarm menu key. As soon as the 972
acquires its signals, you’ll be ready to go.
For details about alarms, see Alarms,
starting on page 132.
Using the chart
Your vessel is normally shown in the
center of the chart screen. If your vessel is
moving, the symbol will point in the direc-
tion of your Course Over Ground (COG). (If
your vessel isn’t moving, the 972 can’t
determine your COG, so the direction of
the vessel symbol won’t mean anything.)
To zoom in and see more details about
your position, press the IN key. To zoom
out (more area and less detail), press OUT.
Alarms screen