NavList:
A Community Devoted to the Preservation and Practice of Celestial Navigation and Other Methods of Traditional Wayfinding
From: Gary LaPook
Date: 2017 Oct 21, 15:00 -0700
How do you determine height of eye on one of these vessels?
--------------------------------------------------
Here's how I did it. In preparation to crossing the crossing the Arlantic on the Royal Cllipper in 2009, I took a can and wrapped kite string around it. On the ship I scouted out seveal places from which I would take oberservations and (making sure no one was watching) dropped the can over the side, letting the string unwind until the can floated. I bobbed it up and down so I was sure of the measurements and then tied a knot in the line level with my eye. I did this at several spots. Then, back in my cabin I stretched the line back and forth accross the cabin (it was a small cabin) several times. I then measured the length of the line with the IKEA tape measure that I always carry with me (I know, I am truly a nerd) and multiplied by the number of times I had to sting the string accross the cabin to come up with the actual measurement. If I remember correctly they were in the range of 25 to 35 feet.
Last August on the Aanui 5 I just went up on the bridge and borrowed the captain's sextant and asked the first officer what height of eye they use on the bridge and he told me thirty meters, lots easier that way.
gl
