Marine Chronometer

Description

Marine chronometers are precise, specialised clocks for finding longitude at sea. They serve as portable time standards. A marine chronometer uses celestial navigation to determine the longitude. It was a significant technical achievement when it was first developed in the 18th century. An accurate knowledge of the time over a long sea voyage was essential for navigation; since there were no electronic or communications aids. John Harrison developed the first true chronometer. His work spanned 31 years of persistent experimentation and testing that revolutionised naval and eventually aerial navigation enabling the Age of Discovery and Colonialism to accelerate.
Marine chronometers were designed and built in a time when the lives of the crews and the integrity of the vessels themselves depended on the accuracy of the marine chronometers on board so their navigators could make accurate positional calculations based on celestial navigation.
This long-awaited edition of the definitive reference work on the marine chronometer is informative, contains additional photographs and many of Rupert Gould’s later revisions and corrections. It deals comprehensively with the history of chronometers and the earliest attempts to measure longitude, while including discussions and diagrams of the various mechanisms employed with details of their inventors. This book is designed for advanced studies in this field, by an author, who is a well-regarded expert of this subject.