The pendulum clock, created 250 years ago, set a world record of accuracy

Shortly before his death in 1776, the British watchmaker John Harrison announced to the public that he was able to create an "ideal clock" that can display the time perfectly. In those years, his colleagues and numerous competitors raised 80-year-old man to laugh. It seems that Harrison was indeed telling the truth, and his watch, even after 250 years after the establishment continue to show the highest precision.

In the eighteenth century Britain was at the peak of their naval power, which is why many experts Kingdom was looking for the most accurate method of tracking ships at sea. At the time there was no GPS, so it was possible to rely only on celestial navigation, which, in turn, were highly dependent on the exact time. That is why the most accurate clock in this case was vital.

The greater part of his life John Harrison sought to create for the Royal Navy such a watch. The person who would have coped with this task, promised a very solid prize – approximately $ 6 million, if the transfer payment in today's money. Unfortunately, despite all the efforts, the development of Harrison was never accepted by his colleagues, so his money he never received.





Towards the end of his life, Harrison has developed a watch, which, he argued, are the most accurate on earth at that time. The precision was so high that they lost less than 1 second for 100 days. The project was thoroughly described in the documentation and placed on the shelf. Only in 1970 clockmaker Martin Burgess came across these paper and built watch Harrison in his drawings.

According to the analysis of experts from the Guinness Book of records, Harrison wasn't lying, and his clock really was the most accurate in the world at the time of their invention. Within 100 days the clock lost only 5/8 of a second, making them the most accurate watch in the world with open pendulum. Harrison finally gained well-deserved respect, even after all these years. As they say, better late than never.published

Source: hi-news.ru