NavList:
A Community Devoted to the Preservation and Practice of Celestial Navigation and Other Methods of Traditional Wayfinding
Re: Beta Cap -- the tenth lunars star
From: Frank Reed CT
Date: 2004 Jan 22, 11:17 EST
From: Frank Reed CT
Date: 2004 Jan 22, 11:17 EST
Jim T wrote:
"1. Were data for any navigational stars (other than the lunar distance stars) provided in the almanacs prior to 1834?"
No, not in the US or Britain. How about France and elsewhere? Anyone know?
And:
"2. What did mariners use the other navigational stars for in 1834? I know from previous posts that they were rarely used until line of position navigation, and even then not commonly used for several decades, but what what did they use them fore before Sumner published his method in the 1840's? "
Latitude at the meridian. Time sights. Anything you could use the Sun for, but it wasn't usually required.
The almanacs in the 19th century were intended for use by land-based astronomers as well as navigators at sea. There was some controversy over separating these two functions. And of course navigators on land (whether land navigators in uncharted territory, as Kieran Kelly described, or normally-seagoing navigators doing practice sights, test sights) might use the stars more often and use techniques almost as sophisticated as astronomers.
(by the way, Sumner lines of position were known by educated navigators, but not widely used until they were fully explained and incorporated into the St.-Hilaire method)
Frank E. Reed
[X] Mystic, Connecticut
[ ] Chicago, Illinois
"1. Were data for any navigational stars (other than the lunar distance stars) provided in the almanacs prior to 1834?"
No, not in the US or Britain. How about France and elsewhere? Anyone know?
And:
"2. What did mariners use the other navigational stars for in 1834? I know from previous posts that they were rarely used until line of position navigation, and even then not commonly used for several decades, but what what did they use them fore before Sumner published his method in the 1840's? "
Latitude at the meridian. Time sights. Anything you could use the Sun for, but it wasn't usually required.
The almanacs in the 19th century were intended for use by land-based astronomers as well as navigators at sea. There was some controversy over separating these two functions. And of course navigators on land (whether land navigators in uncharted territory, as Kieran Kelly described, or normally-seagoing navigators doing practice sights, test sights) might use the stars more often and use techniques almost as sophisticated as astronomers.
(by the way, Sumner lines of position were known by educated navigators, but not widely used until they were fully explained and incorporated into the St.-Hilaire method)
Frank E. Reed
[X] Mystic, Connecticut
[ ] Chicago, Illinois
