NavList:
A Community Devoted to the Preservation and Practice of Celestial Navigation and Other Methods of Traditional Wayfinding
Re: Historical question
From: Frank Reed CT
Date: 2004 Oct 24, 03:17 EDT
From: Frank Reed CT
Date: 2004 Oct 24, 03:17 EDT
Alex E wrote:
"Then using both instruments (if you already have them!)
for this sort of observation makes a sense. All distance
observations, made by the Sextant, with maximal precision
are not interrupted by altitude observations.
And the quadrant (which was already set for altitude observations
does not have to be reset.
This permits the series of observations in a quick sequence.
Using the quadrant in addition to the sextant indeed saves some
time."
Sure. Maybe that's a little excuse for Norie's wording. Or maybe he was just copying over his notes from a standard observation with three observers and it didn't occur to him that the part you're puzzling over wasn't required...
But it seems to me that you would only get the benefit you're suggesting if you have TWO octants (a.k.a. quadrants) since you have to measure the altitudes of two bodies. I once did a set of lunars using a plastic sextant for the altitudes and a decent brass sextant for the lunar distances. I didn't notice any procedural advantage...
Frank R
[ ] Mystic, Connecticut
[X] Chicago, Illinois
"Then using both instruments (if you already have them!)
for this sort of observation makes a sense. All distance
observations, made by the Sextant, with maximal precision
are not interrupted by altitude observations.
And the quadrant (which was already set for altitude observations
does not have to be reset.
This permits the series of observations in a quick sequence.
Using the quadrant in addition to the sextant indeed saves some
time."
Sure. Maybe that's a little excuse for Norie's wording. Or maybe he was just copying over his notes from a standard observation with three observers and it didn't occur to him that the part you're puzzling over wasn't required...
But it seems to me that you would only get the benefit you're suggesting if you have TWO octants (a.k.a. quadrants) since you have to measure the altitudes of two bodies. I once did a set of lunars using a plastic sextant for the altitudes and a decent brass sextant for the lunar distances. I didn't notice any procedural advantage...
Frank R
[ ] Mystic, Connecticut
[X] Chicago, Illinois
