can we help
+44(0)1983 296060
+1 757-788-8872
tell me moreJoin a rally

Menu

Lexington - 7 ° 11 ‘ S. 95° 38 ‘ W



So it is my time in the barrel again, I.e. Watch. In the subject line the numbers stand for latitude seven degrees eleven minutes South of the equator and longitude 95 degrees 38 minutes West of the prime meridian. So for navigation the world is divided into latitude North and South and longitude which is East and West. Zero to 90° North would be from the equator to the North Pole. Zero to 90 South would be from the equator to the South Pole. There is no natural point for East and West so it arbitrarily starts at Greenwich England or the prime meridian. Going west it would go from zero to 180 degrees West. Going east it would be zero to 180 degrees East. Where the two 180’s meet is the international date line. The international date line is not perfectly on that line because a country like Tonga which I think would straddle the line would not want it to be Sunday in half the country and Saturday in the other half. Each degree has 60 minutes in it. At the equator each minute is equal to a nautical mile. Each minute of latitude is a nautical mile since each meridian of latitude is equally separated from the equator to the poles. These are the lines that go around the globe in concentric circles. Now picture the globe with the lines that run North and South. As they approach the poles they get closer together until they all meet at each Pole. That is why each minute of longitude is not equal and not a nautical mile. So with that explanation you should know exactly where I am. It is a moderately dark night since it is cloudy and 9:20 pm. It has stopped raining. Mark and I put up the main sail at the start of my watch. We only had the foresail up before. Since there is a chance of squalls which bring stronger winds we did not put the sail all the way up. That is referred to as reefed (sail made smaller by taking down part of it or not putting it all the way up). That way we are going a little faster but have less chance of becoming overpowered or over canvassed. In closing isn’t it amazing that I can sit on a sail boat in the ocean and type this message to you. Hope all is well with you. You helped me pass the night away! Bob

Previous | Next