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sextant
[ sek-stuhnt ]
noun
- an astronomical instrument used to determine latitude and longitude at sea by measuring angular distances, especially the altitudes of sun, moon, and stars.
- Sextant, Astronomy. the constellation Sextans.
sextant
/ ˈɛəԳ /
noun
- an optical instrument used in navigation and consisting of a telescope through which a sighting of a heavenly body is taken, with protractors for determining its angular distance above the horizon or from another heavenly body
- a sixth part of a circle having an arc which subtends an angle of 60°
sextant
/ ĕ′əԳ /
- An instrument containing a graduated 60° arc and a movable pivoted arm corresponding to the radius of the arc's circle, used in celestial navigation to measure the altitude of a celestial body in order to determine the observer's latitude and longitude. A horizontally mounted telescope and two small mirrors are arranged so that the observer can, by moving the pivoted arm, sight the horizon and the reflected image of the celestial body in the same line, giving a reading along the arc that is used to look up the observer's position in a published table.
51Թ History and Origins
51Թ History and Origins
Origin of sextant1
Example Sentences
Dr. Sharvit speculated that, lacking compasses, astrolabes or sextants, seafarers in the 14th century B.C. probably relied on celestial navigation, taking sightings and angles of the sun and star positions.
The 14 yachts have no computers, GPS or other modern technology and their crews will use sextants to navigate the 27,000 mile journey.
Now Marina had to hold her sextant out of the hatch of her cabin into the icy wind so she could calculate which direction they should fly.
The next morning, after 16 hours of flying with only a compass and sextant for direction, the pair spotted land.
Worsley’s navigational equipment was down to one compass, his sextant, and his tables—and of the twenty-four chronometers he had taken with him from London, he had only one remaining.
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