• observantTrapezium
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    5
    ·
    3 months ago

    As it should be… Navigators could determine latitudes pretty accurately by using astronomy. It was the longitude that was a big problem (maybe that’s part of the reason Japan is placed in the middle of the Pacific).

    • Flying Squid@lemmy.worldOP
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      2
      ·
      3 months ago

      There was a British miniseries about John Harrison, the clockmaker who figured out how to measure longitude, with Jeremy Irons and Michael Gambon. Worth watching if you can find it or want to watch the shitty quality versions on YouTube.