The Tool Of The Ancient Mariner

For centuries, sailors used [the] low-tech [traverse board] to navigate the world’s oceans.

The rounded top of the board bore a painted 32-point compass pattern. Each point featured a line of eight holes radiating from the center of a circle. The lower, square portion of the board had horizontal lines of holes under columns that represented the speed of the ship in knots.

During each standard four-hour watch, the crew measured the ship’s speed and direction eight times, every half hour, and recorded them using pegs: direction under the appropriate compass point on the rounded top; speed along the bottom. After each watch, the navigator collected the data, logged it, plotted it on a chart, cleared the board, and then began the process again.”

Here’s a picture of one: www.hakaimagazine.com.

Traverse to www.hakaimagazine.com for the details.

Source: digg.com.

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