Longitude

Longitude PDF Author: Dava Sobel
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
ISBN: 0802779433
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 209

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Book Description
The dramatic human story of an epic scientific quest and of one man's forty-year obsession to find a solution to the thorniest scientific dilemma of the day--"the longitude problem." Anyone alive in the eighteenth century would have known that "the longitude problem" was the thorniest scientific dilemma of the day-and had been for centuries. Lacking the ability to measure their longitude, sailors throughout the great ages of exploration had been literally lost at sea as soon as they lost sight of land. Thousands of lives and the increasing fortunes of nations hung on a resolution. One man, John Harrison, in complete opposition to the scientific community, dared to imagine a mechanical solution-a clock that would keep precise time at sea, something no clock had ever been able to do on land. Longitude is the dramatic human story of an epic scientific quest and of Harrison's forty-year obsession with building his perfect timekeeper, known today as the chronometer. Full of heroism and chicanery, it is also a fascinating brief history of astronomy, navigation, and clockmaking, and opens a new window on our world.

Longitude

Longitude PDF Author: Dava Sobel
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
ISBN: 0802779433
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 209

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Book Description
The dramatic human story of an epic scientific quest and of one man's forty-year obsession to find a solution to the thorniest scientific dilemma of the day--"the longitude problem." Anyone alive in the eighteenth century would have known that "the longitude problem" was the thorniest scientific dilemma of the day-and had been for centuries. Lacking the ability to measure their longitude, sailors throughout the great ages of exploration had been literally lost at sea as soon as they lost sight of land. Thousands of lives and the increasing fortunes of nations hung on a resolution. One man, John Harrison, in complete opposition to the scientific community, dared to imagine a mechanical solution-a clock that would keep precise time at sea, something no clock had ever been able to do on land. Longitude is the dramatic human story of an epic scientific quest and of Harrison's forty-year obsession with building his perfect timekeeper, known today as the chronometer. Full of heroism and chicanery, it is also a fascinating brief history of astronomy, navigation, and clockmaking, and opens a new window on our world.

The Quest for Longitude

The Quest for Longitude PDF Author: William J. H. Andrewes
Publisher: Collection of Historical Scientific Instruments
ISBN:
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 456

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Book Description
The Quest for Longitude is a book for students and for teachers, for collectors and for scholars, and for the thousands of people who, having enjoyed Sobel's Longitude, desire a well-illustrated reference that describes in detail the many fascinating devices and the intriguing characters who, by solving the ancient problem of finding longitude at sea, changed the world forever. 250 illustrations, 120 in color.

Verrazzano's Horizon

Verrazzano's Horizon PDF Author: Roger M. McCoy
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781532323836
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 328

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Book Description
A history professor discovers a journal covering Verrazzano's voyage to North America in 1524. The journal tells of the Verrazzano brothers' efforts to realize their ambitions, but foiled by French politics and nature. While translating Verrazzano's journal the professor has conflicts with his lover that interfere with his own work.

The New American Practical Navigator

The New American Practical Navigator PDF Author: Nathaniel Bowditch
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Nautical astronomy
Languages : en
Pages : 852

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Book Description


American Practical Navigator

American Practical Navigator PDF Author: Nathaniel Bowditch
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Nautical astronomy
Languages : en
Pages : 886

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Book Description


Finding Longitude

Finding Longitude PDF Author: Richard Dunn
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780007525867
Category : Longitude
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
Official publication of the National Maritime Museum's exhibition "Ships, Clocks and Stars: The Quest for Longitude". 300 years ago, amidst growing frustration from the naval community and pressure from the increasing importance of international trade, the British government passed the 1714 Longitude Act. It was an attempt to solve one of the most pressing problems of the age: how to determine a ship's longitude (east-west position) at sea. With life-changing rewards on offer, the challenge captured the imaginations and talents of astronomers, skilled craftsmen, politicians, seamen and satirists. This beautifully illustrated book is a detailed account of these stories, and how the longitude problem was solved. Highlights of the book include: * Foreword by the fifteenth Astronomer Royal, Martin Rees. * Specially commissioned photographs of the National Maritime Museum's collection. * A new description of the collaborations and conflicts in a tale of technical creativity, scientific innovation and hard commercialism. From the same publisher as Dava Sobel's Longitude, Finding Longitude tells a new story of one of the great achievements of the Georgian age, and how it changed our understanding of the world.

American Practical Navigator

American Practical Navigator PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Nautical astronomy
Languages : en
Pages : 1532

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New American Practical Navigator

New American Practical Navigator PDF Author: Nathaniel Bowditch
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Navigation
Languages : en
Pages : 824

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Book Description


The New American Practical Navigator

The New American Practical Navigator PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Nautical astronomy
Languages : en
Pages : 686

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Pantologia

Pantologia PDF Author: John Mason Good
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Encyclopedias and dictionaries
Languages : en
Pages : 712

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Book Description