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Verne's use of latitude and longitude

From: <ithompson~at~geog.gla.ac.uk>
Date: Thu, 3 Jul 2003 12:44:19 +0100
To: Jules Verne Forum <jvf~at~Gilead.org.il>

In his Oxford's World's Classics translation of Twenty Thousand
Leagues Under the Seas, Bill Butcher makes reference (xxvi) to
Verne's wayward use of latitude and longitude...surprising in a
sailor and navigator. Confirmation is offered in the Rayon Vert
where Verne gives the time of sunset on August 7th as being 19.54
at Oban.As a resident of these parts, this struck me as very early.
Reference to the US Naval Observatory archives for this date (in
1880, the presumed date of Verne's voyage up the west coast)
gives a time of 20.18 for sunset at Oban.In fact one can only arrive
at Verne's time of 19.54 by combining the longitude of Greenwich
(London) with the latitude of Oban, a rather unscientific
method.Although 20.18 would be the time at which the Rayon Vert
would potentially briefly be visible, civil twilight would have
continued until 21.05 and in fact, at that time of year and at that
latitude, total darkness would have been very brief, a matter of a
few hours.
Ian Thompson.
Received on Thu 03 Jul 2003 - 14:38:13 IDT

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