Harrison Decoded

Rory McEvoy, Jonathan Betts, Jonathon Betts (Editor)

    Research output: Book/ReportBook

    Abstract

    Brings together the output of a forty-year collaborative research project that unpicked and put into practice the fine details of John Harrison's extraordinary pendulum clock system. Harrison predicted that his unique method of making pendulum clocks could provide as much as one-hundred-times the stability of those made by his contemporaries. However, his final publication, which promised to describe the system, was a chaotic jumble of information, much of which had nothing to do with clockwork. One contemporary reviewer of Harrison's book could only suggest that the end result was a product of Harrison's 'superannuated dotage.' The focus of this book centres on the making, adjusting, and testing of Clock B which was the subject of various trials at the Royal Observatory, Greenwich. The modern history of Clock B is accompanied by scientific analysis of the clock system, Clock B's performance, the methods of data-gathering alongside historical perspectives on Harrison's clockmaking, that of his contemporaries, and some evaluation of the possible influence of early 18th century scientific thought.
    Original languageEnglish
    PublisherOxford University Press
    ISBN (Print)9780198816812
    Publication statusPublished (VoR) - 28 Apr 2020

    Fingerprint

    Dive into the research topics of 'Harrison Decoded'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

    Cite this