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Mariner's astrolabe

Type Object Region Worldwide Time 1551–1560

The mariner's astrolabe was a precision brass instrument used by European navigators from the mid-16th century to measure the altitude of the sun or …

Timeline

  1. 1551–1555Lisbon · PortugalLisbon craftsmen cast mariner's astrolabes with reinforced frames for the royal fleet and private merchant ships, their scales calibrated for different latitude zones, for voyages on the Africa and Brazil routes.
  2. 1556–1560Seville · SpainSeville, as the American trade port, equipped galleons bound for the New World with astrolabes; pilots corrected their course near the equator using the sun's noon altitude, reducing the risk of drifting off course.

Sources