Why are Some Cannons Fired at Noon?
The noon or midday gun is a traditional time signal: a cannon fired precisely at midday so ships in port could set their chronometers correctly.…
Tag: celestial navigation
How to Use the Constellation Leo to Find South
From the book, The Hidden Seasons: The constellation of Leo the Lion is a good one to know and he’s a friendly and practical character.…
A Letter and Puzzle from Horatio
I recently received the following intriguing letter, via my publisher. It contains a small weather mystery in the final paragraphs. Please do get in touch…
How to Read Water
Clues & Patterns from Puddles to the Sea A New York Times Bestseller. A Sunday Times “Must Read” book. A must-have book for walkers, sailors,…
The Future of Celestial Navigation
A morning glance at a moody and cloudy twilight led me to laying down some of my thoughts about the key challenges facing celestial navigation…
Stunning Natural Navigation Image
A big thank you to James of James Walker Photography for his kind permission to reproduce this image from Umbria, Italy. I have come across…
Which Way Are We Looking?
The last astro quiz proved so popular that I thought we’d do another. This fantastic photo was taken by the expedition photographer, James Walker. Thanks,…
Astronavigation and Devastation
My thanks to William Goble for bringing my attention to a extraordinary piece of navigation history. Although standard practice in aerial navigation at the time,…
I Caught a Glimpse of Orion Last Night…
…and he was high in the sky, which reminded me of one of the simplest and most beautiful of natural navigational celestial techniques. Orion is…
All Change
What a difference an hour makes, I took this photo only one hour later than yesterday’s. Venus was still visible to the naked eye, but…