Sextant Pie
A sextant is a hand-held gadget that looks like the outline of a large piece of pizza. It is essential for navigation since it helps determine degrees of latitude, telling sailors how far to the north...
View ArticleAnchors Away, Me Boys–but How Far?
What happens if you throw your anchor overboard and there isn't enough chain to reach the bottom? Does the anchor haul you down with it?
View ArticleA Lime a Day Kept Scurvy Away
If you're a fan of pirate movies, you may be familiar with the term scurvy dog. It's a curse, typically levied at a pirate who sank below even the already lowly standards of allowed piratical behavior....
View ArticleRed Sky at Night
People have been predicting weather since long before we had Doppler radar and satellite photos, and many of these prediction strategies have survived as popular folk sayings. For example,"Red sky at...
View ArticleHow Whales Became Sailors
Learn how whales became sailors became sailors on this Moment of Science.
View ArticleNeanderthals Were Sophisticated… Who Knew?
According to new research, Neanderthals likely took to the seas long before modern humans.
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