NavList:
A Community Devoted to the Preservation and Practice of Celestial Navigation and Other Methods of Traditional Wayfinding
From: Antoine Couëtte
Date: 2023 Jul 2, 00:08 -0700
Dear Lars,
Thanks for your very interesting contribution.
For Vega - Arcturus, you end up at position N54°55' / E004°11' , which is the very [corrected] position I reached.
If the Puzzle deals with exactly the same travel than the previous Venus / Capella one, then we are entitled to consider the possibility of an erroneous reading on the Sextant. Giving due credit to your reasonable considerations here, the most obvious correction implies indeed changing the Arcturus 29°07' published value into a 30°07' corrected value without changing the time.
Since Arcturus is the last observed body, chances are that the last sextant reading can still be cross checked.
Looking at an appropriate Nautical Chart - which I do not hold - might give extra clues here, especially with the fathometer. Google Earth pro does not give any such clue that I can see.
If we go with the 23:30:00 / Vega / 106°12' and 23:30:48 / Arcturus / 30°07' corrected observations,
our position then becomes : 23:31 UT / N54°55.1' / E002°24.2' which has now become quite consistent with the 22:11:00 Venus / Capella position at N55°00'0 / E002°29.2' .
Please Frank be so kind as to clarify this 23:30:48 Arcturus observation.
And also, I keep being puzzled at another aspect of this puzzle ... on which kind of sail boat are you observing with an Height of Eye of 25' ?
Did you resuscitate the Vasa ? :-)
Antoine