Greenwich Time and the Longitude
Edition: Rev Ed edition
Publisher: Philip Wilson Publishers
Published: April 19, 2003
Language: eng
Format: Hardcover
Number of pages: 208
ISBN-13: 9780856674686
Subjects: Horology; Science: General Issues; Systems and standards; Royal Greenwich Observatory; Science; Science/Mathematics; Time; Physics; Science / General; History; Longitude
First sentence: Today, the name Greenwich is known and used by men and women of every race and creed.
Description: The history of the Royal Observatory, Greenwich has been revised to coincide with the Millenium. Color illustrations and updated text tell the story of Greenwich from its foundations in 1676 to its present status as Longitude 0°, the world's Prime Meridian for measuring longitude and time.

The book covers the importance of longitude for navigation and traces the history of Greenwich Time, the basis of universal time-keeping.

The book is co-published with the National Maritime Museum, where Derek Howse was the former Head of Navigation and Astronomy.
Table of contents: title: Acknowlefgements; title: Preface; title: Foreword; title: Introduction; title: Seeking the longitude 300 BC-AD 1675
label: Chapter 1; title: Greenwich time for astronomers: 1675-1720
label: Chapter 2; title: Greenwich time for navigators: 1700-1840
label: Chapter 3; title: Greenwich time for Great Britain: 1825-1880
label: Chapter 4; title: A prime meridian: 1790-1884
label: Chapter 5; title: Greenwich time for the world: 1884-1939
label: Chapter 6; title: A clock more accurate than the Earth
label: Chapter 7; title: Appendices; title: Finding the longitude
label: I; title: Time-finding by astronomy
label: II; title: The Greenwich Meridian in the Space Age
label: III; title: Bibliography; title: Notes; title: Index