Line of Position Navigation: Sumner and Saint Hilaire the Two Pillars of Modern Celestial Navigation

Michel Vanvaerenbergh/ Peter Ifland

ISBN 10: 1588320685 / ISBN 13: 9781588320681

Published by Unlimited Pub Llc, 2003

About this Item

231 pages. 9.25x5.75x0.50 inches. In Stock.

Seller Inventory # zk1588320685

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Line of Position Navigation: Sumner and Saint Hilaire the Two Pillars of Modern Celestial Navigation
• Publisher: Unlimited Pub Llc
• Publication Date: 2003
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1588320685
• ISBN 13: 9781588320681
• Binding: Paperback
• Condition: Brand New
• Weight: 0.39 kilograms

About this title

Synopsis

If you have ever tracked the North Star across the night sky or held a sextant in your hand, you can learn more from this fine new study of celestial navigation. This book is a unique, concise resource for the history of navigation techniques that began in the 1840s using the stars to steer a ship -- but are still in use today with modern GPS technology. This authoritative book from Unlimited Publishing LLC includes a complete reprint of the rare first edition Captain Thomas H. Sumner wrote in 1843 to describe his new method for finding a line upon which a ship's position rested. Also included are translations of two articles from the 1870s in which French Naval Capitaine Marcq Saint-Hilaire published his new technique for establishing position using the estimated altitude of the celestial body.

About the Author

Co-author Michel Vanvarenbergh learned the basics of navigation at an early age from his father, a merchant marine captain and maritime pilot. He was an engineer before becoming a commercial airline pilot for Sabena World Airlines, qualified as Captain and flight instructor. He taught aircraft navigation at the national Belgian Ecole d'Aviation Civile and wrote the course that is still in use there. Celestial navigation, and particularly the study of historic techniques, has been an area of special interest for more than 30 years. Co-author Peter Ifland is a retired Commander in the U. S. Navy Reserve, having served as a deck officer on destroyer types in WWII and Korea. Ifland holds a Ph.D. in chemistry and spent his professional career as a manager in R&D for a multinational consumer products company. He has a special interest in the hand-held instruments used for celestial navigation. He has also written "Taking the Stars: Celestial Navigation from Argonauts to Astronauts," and published numerous articles on celestial navigation instruments.