Sunday, January 14, 2007

Greenwich

We also visited Greenwhich where they have a naval museum as well as the all important Prime Meridian. The Prime Meridian marks the spot which is 0 degrees longitude (East/West). This was marked based on the location of the observatory located here which was used by astronomers to chart the movements of the stars. Sailors would use the stars to help navigate and know their location.

Also important at this time was the development of an accurate clock or watch. A clock maker by the name of John Harrison developed various models of this clock with the end result being a clock which was very similar to a pocket watch that kept accurate time within 2 seconds over an extended period of time. This was significant because sailers also needed to know the time in order to help determine their position on the map as well (based on sun/star calculations).


Prime Meridian


Me standing on the Prime Meridian

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