NavList:
A Community Devoted to the Preservation and Practice of Celestial Navigation and Other Methods of Traditional Wayfinding
From: Greg Rudzinski
Date: 2012 Jul 17, 20:38 -0700
The first observations are in for the Calculator Kamal prototype.
GPS Lat. 34* 10.2' N
Lon. 119* 14.0' W
Height of Eye 7 ft.
7/18/2012
UT 02:33:00 Hs 6*(center Sun) Azimuth 291.5* intercept 2.8' toward
02:38:30 5* 292.2* 4.9' toward
02:43:10 4* 292.8* 3.3' away
02:48:50 3* 293.9* 1.1' away
Conditions were perfect. I'm satisfied with the results and will not be changing anything.
Greg Rudzinski
[NavList] Calculator Kamal
From: Greg Rudzinski
Date: 17 Jul 2012 08:22
The calculator kamal is constructed of file folder material with a 1/4 inch hole punched in the top. Behind the hole is placed a piece of solar film to act as a Sun filter. Degree marks are lined and notched on each side using trig. The key to getting the trig right is to add a half inch to the selected tape measure distance. This half inch allows for the distance from the front of the eye to the center of the eye. It is possible with careful construction to get 6' of practical accuracy out of this CN tool. The user will need a good pair of sea legs and a great deal of eye hand coordination to obtain a satisfactory observation. The original pilots that used these types of angle measuring implements (made of wood) must have had better than 20 20 vision to be able to sight polaris and the horizon at night. To me this kind of navigating seems quite advanced for the 10th century.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kamal_(navigation)
Greg Rudzinski
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