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Navigational Instruments #5

Sailors in the thirteenth century used basic navigational instruments such as compasses, astrolabes, and sextants, relying on celestial bodies for guidance. The development of ships during the Renaissance led to larger, stronger vessels called caravels, designed for long-distance exploration and equipped with cannons for defense. Tools like the lead line were essential for measuring water depth and understanding sea floor characteristics.

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9 views8 pages

Navigational Instruments #5

Sailors in the thirteenth century used basic navigational instruments such as compasses, astrolabes, and sextants, relying on celestial bodies for guidance. The development of ships during the Renaissance led to larger, stronger vessels called caravels, designed for long-distance exploration and equipped with cannons for defense. Tools like the lead line were essential for measuring water depth and understanding sea floor characteristics.

Uploaded by

Darius
Copyright
© All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

NAVIGATIONAL

INSTRUMENTS
AND SHIPS
• The instruments the sailors used were considered to be basic. They
used the sun and the stars for guidance.

• Maps that the sailors had made were incorrect.

• During the thirteenth century European sailors had simple compasses


with magnetic pointers to find the north, it is believed that these
compasses came from China by way of Arabia during the crusades.

• The sailors were able to determine their position without sight of


land.
TOOLS

➢ COMPASS- It determines the direction in which the ships are


travelling. It has magnetic metallic pointers which is in line
with the magnetic field of earth.

➢ ASTROLABE- The mariner's astrolabe was a simplified version


of an instrument originally developed by Arab astronomers
for measuring the height of heavenly bodies above the
horizon and came into use in navigation by about 1470.
➢ QUADRANT

This consisted of a fixed semi-circular base worked out in 90


degrees and a moveable arm with a tiny hole at one fixed end.

Through the hole the navigator would spy out the stars. Since
the ship was moving and the star was not, the reading would be
different. The navigator would have an idea of how many miles
the ship travelled.
➢THE SEXTANT - is an object used to measure the angle between two
objects,the navigators used this instrument to determine the angle
between a celestial object(star) and the horizon which is known an
object latitude.

➢THE SAND/HOURGLASS- is a device used to measure the passage of


time. It comprises two bulbs connected vertically by a narrow neck
that allows a regulated flow of a substance (glass sand) from the upper
bulb to the lower one.
➢ Lead

One of the first and most valuable inventions in


navigation was the lead line, it consisted of a lead
weight weighting from 16-20 lbs. and a long rope.
Since the 5th century BCE, the lead line has been used
to both measure the depth of the water and
determine the characteristics of the sea floor.
THE DEVELOPMENT OF SHIPS

• The renaissance period saw major development of ships to


travel longer distances.

• Sailors and navigators wanted to explore more long-


distance places therefore, there was a need to develop
more ship for more voyages.

• The ships were built larger and stronger and with more sails
as well as with more decks and larger holds for more cargo.
The larger ships were called
CARAVELS and these ships had
a big square sail in the middle
called the MAINSAIL with a
little one above called
TOPSAIL. The FOREMAST and
its FORESAIL and also a small
TOPSAIL. The MIZZEN mast in
the STERN has a triangular
sloping sail called a
[Link] caravels carried
cannons and guns to defend
themselves.

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