Quest for longitude from "summary" of Longitude: The True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time by Dava Sobel
The search for a solution to the problem of determining longitude at sea consumed the minds of many in the 18th century. Ships depended on accurate knowledge of their longitude to navigate safely across vast oceans. The lack of a reliable method for determining longitude led to countless shipwrecks and loss of life. The British government offered a substantial reward to anyone who could devise a method for accurately determining longitude. John Harrison, a self-taught clockmaker, dedicated his life to solving the problem of longitude. He believed that the key to accurately determining longitude lay in creating a clock that could keep precise time at sea. Harrison faced numerous challenges in his quest, including the skepticism of established astronomers and the limitations of technol...
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