Hand compass
Compact magnetic compass / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A hand compass (also hand bearing compass or sighting compass) is a compact magnetic compass capable of one-hand use and fitted with a sighting device to record a precise bearing or azimuth to a given target or to determine a location.[1][2] Hand or sighting compasses include instruments with simple notch-and-post alignment ("gunsights"), prismatic sights, direct or lensatic sights,[3] and mirror/vee (reflected-image) sights. With the additional precision offered by the sighting arrangement, and depending upon construction, sighting compasses provide increased accuracy when measuring precise bearings to an objective.[4]
The term hand compass is used by some in the forestry and surveying professions to refer to a certain type of hand compass optimized for use in those fields, also known as a forester or cruiser compass.[5][6] A hand compass may also include the various one-hand or 'pocket' versions of the surveyor's or geologist's transit.