Sorry, I was just teasing a bit.
Perhaps Don1reed is a better person to answer that. Since I have no real experience. But to my knowledge, yes, determining where you are is it's sole purpous. We are lucky enough to have GPS to tell us where we are these days. That wasn't available 50 years back. During WW2 there was also kinds of radio navigation (radio transmitters send out radiowaves with which you could orientate yourself) But that requires significant equipment, for the navigator as wel as landbased. Besides celestial navigation was also done well before the electronic age. For celestial navigation you can make do with much simpler equipment: Something to measure positions of the celestial objects (sun, moon, planets, stars) like a sextant/octant, clock, ephemeris (tables with sun/moon/planet/star positions) or thesedays a handheld computer, pen paper and drawing tools. (if you ignore the need for observatories to make those tables in the firstplace
) The earth rotates at an increadible steady pace, and the planets and moon go on their way minding their own business. Which makes it possible to predict the rising and setting and all other positions of the stars and moon/sun/planets in the sky centuries in advance. From that you can calculate back where you were when you observed those planets, sun, moon or stars.
The stars, planets, sun or moon can only tell you where you are. They cannot tell you where you
should go. (Not even an
astro-loger can make them tell what you should do in your life. But if you are openminded it can tell you what is probable to happen
... but I'm drifting off in a soapbox now ) That's your own choice. If you find out that you are not where you are supposed to be on this world, then you can take hold of the rudder/helm, take note of your compass and change course as you see fit.
Though it's usually fair weather wherever you can see the stars.
