Celestia Forums

I was wondering if there was a clear way to convert the normal coordinates into fractional degrees.

What do you mean by "normal coordinates"?

fwiw,
1 hour = 60 minutes (of time) = 3600 seconds (of time) = 15 degrees (of angle)
1 minute (of time) = 60 seconds (of time)
also 1 minute (of angle) = 60 seconds (of angle)
and 1 degree = 3600 seconds (of angle)

so 10 h 30m 30s = 10 + 30/60 + 30/3600 = 10.5083 hours = 157.6245 degrees

and 10 degrees 30m 30s = 10.5083 degrees = 0.70055 hours

but I don't know if that's related to your question.

I think this can help me out a little. Also, my apologizes for my language. I am so used to the "h-m-s" way of coordinants, that this fractional degrees was completely new to me. So in my mind, I call it abnormal.

Just let me see if I have this right.

h = hour
m = minute ( ' )
s = second ( " )
d = degree
f = Fractional degree

RA: h + m / 60 + s / 3600 = x * 15 = f
Dec: d + m / 60 + s / 3600 = f

Yup.

If the declination is less than zero, it becomes d-m/60-s/3600

To clarify, a Declination of
-6d 30m 15s
would mean that it's in the southern hemisphere, slightly more than 6.5 degrees below the equator.
In other words, the minus sign applies to the entire expression, not only to the degree value.
The resulting fractional value would be
- (6 + 30/60 + 15/3600)

(a slight algebraic manipulation of what ajtribick wrote)