Chapter 151 Mathematics, Machinery and Navigation
As the ship gradually entered the open sea, the wind and waves became stronger and stronger, and the ship gradually became bumpy.
Su Ze had stopped vomiting completely. He stood on the deck and measured the wind direction for a while, and for a while he measured the hydrological indicators. He used a reed pen to write and draw in the logbook.
After the hydrological conditions were almost recorded and it was almost dark, Su Ze started playing with the telescope again and looked at the stars.
Lin Mojun watched Su Ze record something while looking at the stars, and asked curiously:
"Mr. Su, what are you doing?"
Su Ze said while playing with the compass, "I'm trying to calculate the latitude and longitude."
Lin Mojun asked doubtfully: "Latitude and longitude?"
Su Ze recorded the data he measured and said to Lin Mojun: "Baihu, how do you determine your position and find the way back when you are at sea?"
Lin Mojun Said: "Record the sailing speed and direction, and then use the islands and foreign objects on the coast as a yardstick, and you will naturally be able to return." Sure enough, in
this day and age, whether in the East or the West, navigation is a matter of experience and metaphysics.
The method used by Lin Mojun was actually the "range and side position method" used in naval drills in the Ming Dynasty.
The method is also very simple, that is, by determining the speed of the ship and the sailing direction of the ship, the position of the sailing ship can be roughly estimated.
The navigation method is also very simple, that is, relying on the landmarks on the shore and the islands on the sea.
Su Ze also saw Changningwei's chart, which was drawn by Bai Hu a generation ago. The positioning marks on the chart were written in a thick book. Lin Mojun was asked by his father to recite this chart since he was a child.
In fact, the nautical charts of the West are not very good these days. Su Ze has seen Captain Alfonso's charts. It seems that the Western charts are more refined. In fact, the principle of the drawing method is the same as that of the Lin family charts. They are all drawn through Estimate the position based on the sailing distance. In fact, novice captains have no way to sail based on the charts.
This is why an experienced captain is so rare, because the navigation methods of many routes are in the minds of these captains and are not on the map at all.
It can be said that there is not much difference between the East and the West in the navigation and surveying technology of this era.
What really widened the gap between the East and the West was the development of Western mathematics, astronomy, and watchmaking after the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.
A dark cloud blocked the sky. Su Ze put down the telescope and said,
"Baihu, I told you about the earth we are on, right?"
Lin Mojun nodded. Having grown up by the sea, she had also been curious about what the entire ocean was. It looked like that, until one time Lin Mojun heard Su Ze giving a lecture to Lin Liangjun and the others, saying that the sky was round and the earth was round, and the whole world was a ball.
Although it sounds absurd, Lin Mojun, who has been sailing at sea for a long time, consciously believes that Su Ze is right.
Some time ago, Su Ze was preparing to open a navigation school. Lin Mojun also communicated with Captain Alfonso. After reading Captain Alfonso's world chart, he realized for the first time how huge the whole world is.
Su Ze continued: "The world is vast. If you are sailing across the ocean, it is very difficult to determine the position on a long-distance voyage by relying only on the distance and lateral position method. If you are sailing across the ocean, you must have more accurate charts and be able to navigate on the ocean." A method for determining the position of ships on the ocean."
Lin Mojun nodded, and with her navigation experience, she quickly understood what Su Ze meant.
As a captain, she certainly understood the importance of charts in navigation.
Some Fujian maritime merchants offered high-priced rewards for sea charts. It was said that a chart that could reach Southeast Asia was worth thousands of gold.
Lin Mojun had a family chart, but he thought of his own chart and Captain Alfonso's exquisite world map.
Lin Mojun said worriedly: "I heard Captain Alfonso say that the Folanji country he is in is just a small country, but they can actually sail thousands of miles to our Ming Dynasty. Doesn't it mean that these Xiyi people have already mastered the power of Ming Dynasty?" What is the method of ocean navigation?"
Su Ze shook his head and said: "In the past, the great eunuch Zheng He was also able to sail to the Western Ocean. In fact, the method used by Zheng Gong to sail to the South Sea is the same as the method used by the Western Yi to come to the Ming Dynasty today. They drove along the coastline and It’s not a true ocean voyage.”
The current Eastern Route is to go around Africa and then sail eastward along the ports in the Indian Ocean, sailing along the coastline the entire way.
In fact, the Western countries in this era only mastered the method of measuring latitude. It would have to wait until the 18th century to truly solve the problem of measuring longitude.
Lin Mojun felt a little calmer after hearing that Xiyi had not solved the problem.
After communicating with Captain Alfonso these days, Lin Mojun also felt deeply worried.
Nowadays, all the Western countries have entered an era of crazy exploration of the ocean. When she heard that the Kingdom of Spain has a fleet of hundreds of ships, you can imagine her shock.
Just a group of Japanese pirates have already caused chaos in the southeastern seaboard of the Ming Dynasty. What if the Xiyi fleet comes to the Ming Dynasty?
For the first time, Lin Mojun had doubts about Ming Dynasty being the center of the world.
I also heard that the main ships of Xiyi were now equipped with a large number of artillery. Thinking of King Lu's artillery tactics in attacking the Southeast Coast Guard, Lin Mojun once again felt the technological gap.
Su Ze once again mentioned the positioning and charting technology of the voyage, and Lin Mojun asked: "Mr. Su, does he have a solution to this problem?" At
this time, the dark clouds in the sky dispersed, and Su Ze pointed to the Big Dipper on the horizon and said; " I told Lin Liangjun how to measure acres. In fact, it can be done on the entire earth. Using the rotation of the earth as the axis, the sphere is divided into equal longitudes and latitudes. To determine the position of the ship on the earth, you only need to know the longitude. and latitude are enough."
"To map an accurate chart, you only need to map the port's accuracy and latitude."
Lin Mojun was almost stunned, but the longitude and latitude The concept was not difficult to understand, so she nodded reluctantly.
At this time, the dark clouds dispersed. Su Ze pointed to the Big Dipper on the horizon and said, "The latitude is not difficult to measure. The position of the Dipper with respect to the earth is constant. As long as the angle of the Dipper is measured, the latitude can be determined." Lin Mojun looked at the Dipper
. Stars, the Big Dipper were also used by the Ming Dynasty's Tritons to determine the orientation. Although he didn't know the elevation angle, Lin Mojun still understood the saying that the stars are constant.
"What about the longitude?"
Su Ze said, "I have two ideas."
Lin Mojun was stunned for a moment. She had heard Captain Alfonso say that the royal family of Franji once issued a reward of gold as high as a human being's. How to measure longitude in the ocean, Su Ze actually named two methods at once?
Su Ze said: "One is called the Celestial Clock Method, and the other is the Clock Method."
"Actually, they are two methods, but in the end it is actually one method. To determine the location, you must first determine the time. Do you know the time difference, Baihu? "
Lin Mojun shook his head.
Su Ze said: "The sky is round and the sun, the moon and the stars rise, actually originate from the rotation of the earth."
Su Ze popularized astronomy knowledge to Lin Mojun. After explaining the time difference, Su Ze said:
"Actually, the issue of longitude is a matter of time. For example, if I use Changningwei's time as the standard time, if I sail to Nanyang and know the time difference between Nanyang and Changningwei's standard time, I can know the longitude." Lin Mojun was completely burned out
. The CPU was broken and she couldn't keep up with Su Ze's thoughts at all. Su Ze did not intend to elaborate on this astronomical and mathematical problem, but simply said:
"My two methods, one is the celestial clock method, which uses the movement of celestial bodies as a clock and determines the time difference through the positions of celestial stars." "
One . The so-called Celestial Clock Method is to make an accurate clock when sailing to the sea, and then determine the time difference based on the time between the day and the day after sailing to a place."
On the timeline before Su Ze traveled through, the Celestial Clock Method and the Clock Method unfolded There was a fierce competition, and it was not until the advent of modern accurate marine clocks that the winner was finally determined.
The celestial clock method requires the captain to have superb astronomical and mathematical abilities in order to accurately measure longitude.
The clock method, with its high cost, discouraged ordinary captains. It was not until the development of clock technology in the 19th century that the price of marine clocks came down and they could be used on ordinary merchant ships.
After talking about this, Su Ze found that Lin Mojun had completely fainted.
Su Ze sighed. From the measurement of longitude and latitude, we can see that the technological backwardness of the East and the West in modern times is not the backwardness of a certain craft or weapon.
In fact, in the late Ming Dynasty, the Ming Dynasty was able to make its own red cannons, and the quality of cannons cast in some places was no worse than imported ones.
In terms of navigation, the fleets of the late Ming Dynasty were also able to trade in the Indian Ocean, and they seemed not to be far behind.
But in fact the biggest lag is in scientific thinking and quantitative analysis.
The late Ming Dynasty was indeed able to cast artillery, but the generals of the Ming Dynasty at that time advocated the "double filling method", believing that the more gunpowder filled, the more powerful it would be.
But in fact, there is a mathematical relationship between the amount of gunpowder loaded and the length and width of the barrel. It does not mean that more gunpowder is loaded, the more powerful it is.
The development of artillery in the West has begun to study the proportional relationship between the diameter of the gun body and the length of the barrel, and study in principle how to create artillery with greater power, greater range and greater range.
The backwardness of modern times is not the lack of certain weapons, certain factories, or these technical things.
The Ming Dynasty did not lack captains capable of long voyages. What it lacked were astronomers like Galileo and Maskelyne, and clockmakers like Harrison.
The development of real navigation technology is not only the development of shipbuilding, but also the technology of astronomy, mathematics, physics, engineering, surveying, and cartography.
A captain who is trained by word of mouth and relies on various experiences and secrets is not as good as a group of captains who can systematically train and master professional skills.
Similarly, a cannon-casting craftsman who can make a sophisticated cannon is not as good as a cannon-casting workshop that can standardize the production of artillery.
The crescent moon is crescent, Su Ze looks at the fighting stars in the distance. In this era, whether it is liberal arts or science, the Ming Dynasty is not far behind the West.
But the Ming and Qing Dynasties completely missed the intellectual enlightenment and technological explosion that followed over the next two hundred years.
Suppress these thoughts for the time being and deal with the Japanese pirates in front of you.
A night of silence.
One day later, Su Ze secretly held a telescope and saw a small island in the distance.
The island looked like a crescent. Su Ze handed the telescope to Lin Mojun, and she quickly determined that this was Dong'ao Island.
"This is Dong'ao Island. When I was a child, I went to this island with my father. At that time, my father said that as long as two hundred people were stationed on Dong'ao Island and towers were built, the Japanese pirates could be kept out of the sea. It's a pity that dad wrote a letter The Haidao Yamen at that time did not respond from Shangguan."
Su Ze used a telescope to observe Dong'ao Island, and it turns out that this island is a very good natural port.
There are mountains from both ends of the crescent moon to the back of the crescent moon, and reefs can be seen all around. This means that it is impossible to land from other locations on the island. You only need to defend the port to ensure the safety of the island.
You can see that the water near the beach is obviously lighter, which shows that Crescent Bay is a lagoon.
The lagoon has much less wind and waves than ordinary seaports, making it a natural and excellent port.
There is a spring left from the mountain. Su Ze even saw some vegetable fields on the island. The dense mountain forests show that the soil of this island is fertile and can support soldiers in military camps.
Su Ze was almost drooling. Such an island was so perfect!
Through the telescope, Su Ze saw Lu Dawang's ship docked in the port.
There are also various types of Japanese pirate ships. Su Ze saw the Ming Dynasty's Guangzhou, Fu, and Shachuan ships, as well as some flat-bottomed fishing boats. Su Ze even saw a huge "centipede boat."
After Lin Mojun saw the centipede ship, he immediately said: "This is the flagship of the Deer King, the Centipede Wan!"
Su Ze also did not expect to see such a galley in East Asia.
A galley sails in addition to using the power of the sail, but also relies on human power to paddle the oars to drive the ship.
Because the long oars on both sides look like centipedes, they are also called centipede boats.
Galleys have appeared in China very early, but they were generally small boats for inland navigation.
The style of this ship is obviously not Chinese. Sure enough, Lin Mojun said: "I heard that this ship was made by a Western shipbuilder. There are sixteen pairs of oars on each side. The oars were plundered by the Deer King." Slaves."
"I heard that the Deer King plundered the villages, and all the women were raped and humiliated by his men. All the old people and children were killed, and the youngest and strongest ones were caught and fucked on the Centipede." "It is said that the Deer King
promised , as long as you fuck for thirty days, you can be free, but few people can survive for thirty days, and even those who survive are basically useless." "Why is this?" "These fuckers
are
all He was tied up in the paddle tank with iron chains and ropes. He was not allowed to leave to eat, drink, or relieve himself. The paddle hold could only accommodate one person. Staying in it in the sweltering summer heat was torture." "It takes a lot of strength to paddle such a paddle. It is said
that There are Japanese overseers on the boat. If the rowing is not good, they will be killed and replaced with new slaves from the bottom warehouse."
Su Ze clenched his fists and said: "This beast!"
Near the edge of the lagoon, the fleet of the Crooked Hoofers stopped. After landing, two flat-bottomed Japanese pirate fishing boats approached the fleet.
Su Ze used a telescope to observe the dock, and sure enough he saw a warehouse where gunpowder was piled.
Third update, I have to write this paragraph about asking for votes
, about the navigation technical route
(end of this chapter)