Lost At Sea: The Search For Longitude Nova : Season 25 Episode 11
TV-PG PBS 1h 00m int(0)
Aired: October 6th, 1998 @ 9:00 PM EST on PBS
In 1714, following a maritime disaster, British Parliament offers £20,000 for the first reliable method of determining longitude on a ship at sea. It's known that longitude can be found by comparing a ship's local time to the time at the port of origin. The challenge is finding a clock—a chronometer—that can keep time at sea, where temperature changes, humidity, gravity and a ship's movement affect accuracy. NOVA chronicles the seventeenth-century journey to determine longitude.