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Longitude : the true story of a lone genius who solved the greatest scientific problem of his time
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Longitude : the true story of a lone genius who solved the greatest scientific problem of his time

by Dava Sobel

This book details the eighteenth-century quest to solve the longitude problem, the greatest scientific challenge of its day. It chronicles the forty-year endeavour to build a precise marine chronometer, a mechanical solution that revolutionised navigation at sea.

Accession 5477 ISBN 9780007718832 Publisher Fourth Estate
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TAGS
Curated Derived
Astronomy Decorative Arts Economics Engineering Geography History Measurement Science Technology Time
CONNECTIONS
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State
on_shelf
True
position_updated_at
2026-06-04 16:54
orientation
vertical
Details

Physical

binding_type
Hard Back
dimensions
none captured
spine_text
none captured

Metadata

Book form
LOCATION HISTORY
G:N2:3 3 Current vertical
6 days, 19 hours ago
Book Location
Updated 5 days, 20 hours ago
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Frozen copy of Vernon's record from the last sync. Fields tagged → flow back into the Pulse record.

Last synced 2026-06-02 08:30 (1 week, 1 day ago)

Identity

name→ title
Longitude : the true story of a lone genius who solved the greatest scientific problem of his time
vernon_id
9169
accession_no→ accession_number
5477
vernon_slug
longitude-the-true-story-of-a-lone-genius-who-solved-the-greatest-scientific-problem-of-his-time-dava-sobel

Drives Pulse state

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On Shelf
location_name
Zone S2/Level 1/Phrontisterion/MONA
location_reason
On Shelf
isbn_issn→ isbn (when valid)
9780007718832

Descriptive

production_date
1996
object_type
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object_status
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brief_description
A fascinating account of how a virtually unknown watchmaker named John Harrison conquered one of the oldest and thorniest problems surrounding the ocean voyages - the problem of accurately measuring longitude -, which stumped even the best of scientific minds for centuries. (Goodreads)

Subjects & people

authors→ author (initial fill only)
Dava Sobel
tags→ tags
Auxiliary sciences of history, Environmental sciences, Science, Astronomy, Physical sciences, Inner planets, Planets, Solar system, Geodetic astronomy, Spherical astronomy, Engineering, Technology, Locomotion, Earth sciences, Geophysics, Cartography, Surveying, Navigation, Clocks and watches, Chronology, Venus (Planet) -- Transit, Europe -- History -- 1648-1789, Chronometers, Longitude, Prime Meridian, Meridians (Geodesy), Geodesy, Seven Years' War, 1756-1763
subject_people
Galileo Galilei (Italian, b.1564, d.1642), John E. Harrison, Great Britain. Royal Navy, Royal Society (Great Britain)
subject_objects
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Cover image

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