The article tells about what a chronometer is, who invented it, why it is needed and how this device is used in the modern world.
Ancient time
Since ancient times, people have felt the need to accurately determine or measure the length of time. And if in the days of the primitive system they somehow managed without such things, then with the creation of a civilized social society, this issue arose with new urgency. The lack of clocks and other devices for accurate time measurement made some aspects of life very difficult. And if there were no problems with the countdown of days, then how to arrange a meeting? Of course, you can navigate by the sun, but this method is far from perfect, and the weather is not always clear. It is for these reasons that people have tried to invent watches and their analogues.
The first such devices found by archaeologists are called clepsydras. This is a vessel from which liquid gradually flowed out, due to which a float with divisions fell. Of course, such a thing was only suitable for measuring the length of time.
But even earlier, our ancestors used sundial, noticing that the location of the shadows changes, depending on the time of day. Well, watches of the design familiar to us first began to be mass-produced at the end of the Middle Ages.centuries. They were expensive, large, and not everyone could afford them. And there was no such need - a tower was built in the city, where the clock stood, and anyone could find out the time.
However, watches of different designs still had errors, and therefore in 1731 a certain watchmaker Harrison designed a chronometer. So what is a chronometer and what is it for?
Definition
According to the terminology, a chronometer is a particularly accurate watch with minimal error. They are used where the definition of time or its length is especially important. Purchasing such a device for home use is pointless.
To put it simply, this is the most ordinary watch, the course of which is very accurate, and they are free from a number of shortcomings. So Garrison was not the inventor of watches, he only took their general design and brought it to perfection for those times. So now we know what a chronometer is. But where does it apply?
Application
The main drawback of such a device as a chronometer was its price initially. Since it took much more time to make it, compared to ordinary watches. Nevertheless, a little later, Harrison was able to reduce their cost, and chronometers became very popular. The first to appreciate them on their merits were the sailors. In those days, the determination of latitude and longitude was carried out by the sun, and an accurate chronometer was needed to fix the time of sunrise or sunset of our luminary. Naturally, the more precisely this was done, the more accuratelythe sailors determined their location.
Later, various scientists became interested in the device, for example, astronomers, who needed to record some events very accurately. So we figured out what a chronometer is.
Present
A similar device has been used for several centuries for navigation on aircraft or ships, but now the chronometer is practically not used, except perhaps as a backup tool. The fact is that it was supplanted by more accurate quartz watches. And in general, the navigation of ships and aircraft has long been based on radio signals or satellite systems. But if desired, as before, anyone can purchase such a device as a chronometer. Its price varies greatly, depending on the size, brand, accuracy and decoration. For example, a replica marine chronometer MX 6 will cost 31,000 Russian rubles. And wrist and modern chronometers of the Ulysse Nardin brand cost from 300,000 thousand. But the cost of simpler options starts at about 1,500 rubles.
