stackyFACTSBefore satellites, figuring out your location required starring into a brass contraption and doing aggressive geometry.
Before satellites, figuring out your location required starring into a brass contraption and doing aggressive geometry. The sextant works by using a small mirror to reflect a celestial body, like the sun or a star, down to the horizon line. By measuring the precise angle between the star and the horizon, navigators could calculate their latitude. It is essentially using a shiny piece of glass to force the universe to hand over your coordinates.
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