The Illustrated Longitude: The True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time

The Illustrated Longitude: The True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time
by Dava Sobel, William J. H. Andrewes, William J.H. Andrewes

The Illustrated Longitude: The True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time
List Price: $22.95
Our Price: $13.49
You Save: $9.46 (41%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $6.90 (click here)
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions


(Click here)
Buy this book at online book store in your country
Canada | UK | Germany | France

Book Summary Information

Author: Dava Sobel, William J. H. Andrewes, William J.H. Andrewes
Edition: Paperback
Format: Bargain Price
Published: 2003-01-01
ISBN: N/A
Number of pages: 224
Publisher: Walker & Company

Book Reviews of The Illustrated Longitude: The True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time

Book Review: A Wonderful Book
Summary: 4 Stars

This is a book that I have enjoyed reading and viewing the great illustrations. I have learned so much about a topic of which I knew next to nothing.

Summary of The Illustrated Longitude: The True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time

When Dava Sobel's Longitude was published to universal acclaim in 1995, readers voiced only one regret: that it was not illustrated. Now, William Andrewes, the man who organized and hosted the Longitude Symposium that inspired her book, has joined Dava Sobel to create a richly illustrated version of her classic story.

The Illustrated Longitude recounts in words and images the epic quest to solve the thorniest scientific problem of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Throughout the great age of exploration, sailors attempted to navigate the oceans without any means of measuring their longitude: All too often, voyages ended in total disaster when both crew and cargo were captured or lost upon the rocks of an unexpected landfall. Thousands of lives and the fortunes of seafaring nations hung on a resolution.

To encourage a solution, governments established major prizes for anyone whose method or device proved successful. The largest reward of ?20,000-truly a king's ransom-was offered by the British Parliament in 1714. The scientific establishment-from Galileo to Sir Isaac Newton-had been certain that a celestial answer would be found and invested untold effort in this pursuit. In stark contrast, one man, John Harrison, imagined and built the unimaginable: a clock that solved the problem by keeping precise time at sea, called today the chronometer. His trials and tribulations to win the prize throughout a forty-year obsession are the culmination of this remarkable story.

The Illustrated Longitude contains the entire original narrative of Longitude, redesigned to accompany 178 images chosen by Will Andrewes: from portraits of every important figure in the story to maps, diagrams, and photographs of scientific instruments, especially John Harrison's remarkable clocks. Andrewes's elegant captions emphasize the scientific and historical events surrounding the images, and they tell their own dramatic story of longitude, paralleling and illuminating Dava Sobel's memorable tale.


Dava Sobel's Longitude tells the story of how 18th-century scientist and clockmaker William Harrison solved one of the most perplexing problems of history--determining east-west location at sea. This lush, colorfully illustrated edition adds lots of pictures to the story, giving readers a more satisfying sense of the times, the players, and the puzzle. This was no obscure, curious difficulty--without longitude, ships often found themselves so far off course that sailors would starve or die of scurvy before they could reach port. When a nationally-sponsored contest offered a hefty cash prize to the person who could develop a method to accurately determine longitude, the race was on. In the end, the battle of accuracy--and wills--fought between Harrison and arch-rival Maskelyne was ruthless and dramatic, worthy of a Hollywood feature film. Longitude's story is surprising and fascinating, offering a window into the past, before Global Positioning Satellites made it look easy. --Therese Littleton
Book Subjects
Most talked about in Books and e-Books
Kindle Shortcuts and Kindle-friendly Websites. This concise Kindle user guide describes keyboard shortcuts and hidden Kindle features for both Kindle 2 and Kindle 1. Updated 04/28/2009 ImageKindle Shortcuts and Kindle-friendly Websites. This concise Kindle user guide describes keyboard shortcuts and hidden Kindle features for both Kindle 2 and Kindle 1. Updated 04/ 28/ 2009
by MobileReference, mobi
MobileReference; MobileReference; Release date: 2009-04-03; Published: 2009-04-03; Kindle Edition; eBooks
Best price: $0.99
Twilight (The Twilight Saga, Book 1) ImageTwilight (The Twilight Saga, Book 1)
by Stephenie Meyer
Little, Brown Young Readers; Published: 2006-09-06; Paperback; Book
Best price: $5.00
Price in other shops: $10.99
The Shack ImageThe Shack
by William P. Young
Windblown Media; Published: 2008-07-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $7.40
Price in other shops: $14.99
The Twilight Saga Collection ImageThe Twilight Saga Collection
by Stephenie Meyer
Little, Brown Young Readers; Published: 2008-10-15; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $43.87
Price in other shops: $83.00
Cook Yourself Thin: Skinny Meals You Can Make in Minutes ImageCook Yourself Thin: Skinny Meals You Can Make in Minutes
by Lifetime Television
Voice; Published: 2009-04-28; Paperback; Book
Best price: $10.99
Price in other shops: $19.99
New Moon (The Twilight Saga, Book 2) ImageNew Moon (The Twilight Saga, Book 2)
by Stephenie Meyer
Little, Brown Young Readers; Published: 2008-05-31; Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.75
Price in other shops: $10.99
Eclipse (The Twilight Saga, Book 3) ImageEclipse (The Twilight Saga, Book 3)
by Stephenie Meyer
Little, Brown Young Readers; Published: 2007-08-07; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $10.19
Price in other shops: $19.99
Breaking Dawn (The Twilight Saga, Book 4) ImageBreaking Dawn (The Twilight Saga, Book 4)
by Stephenie Meyer
Little, Brown Young Readers; Published: 2008-08-02; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $11.95
Price in other shops: $22.99
The Lost Symbol ImageThe Lost Symbol
by Dan Brown
Doubleday Books; Published: 2009-09-15; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $15.63
Price in other shops: $28.95
Liberty and Tyranny: A Conservative Manifesto ImageLiberty and Tyranny: A Conservative Manifesto
by Mark R. Levin
Threshold Editions; Published: 2009-03-24; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $12.25
Price in other shops: $25.00
Similar Books and other products
Slave Ship Sailors and Their Captive Cargoes, 1730-1807 ImageSlave Ship Sailors and Their Captive Cargoes, 1730-1807
by Emma Christopher
Cambridge University Press; Published: 2006-04-03; Paperback; Book
Best price: $17.37
Price in other shops: $26.99
Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies ImageGuns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies
by Jared Diamond
W.W. Norton & Co.; Published: 2005-07-11; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $14.01
Price in other shops: $24.95
The Hiding Place (DELUXE CHRISTIAN CLASSICS) ImageThe Hiding Place (DELUXE CHRISTIAN CLASSICS)
by Corrie Ten Boom
Barbour Books; Published: 2000-07-01; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $6.07
Price in other shops: $9.97
Maritime Supremacy & the Opening of the Western Mind: Naval Campaigns That Shaped the Modern World ImageMaritime Supremacy & the Opening of the Western Mind: Naval Campaigns That Shaped the Modern World
by Peter Padfield
Overlook Hardcover; Published: 2000-04-03; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $9.50
Price in other shops: $35.00
Oscar Romero: Reflections on His Life and Writings (Modern Spiritual Masters Series) ImageOscar Romero: Reflections on His Life and Writings (Modern Spiritual Masters Series)
by Marie Dennis, Renny Golden, Scott Wright
Orbis Books; Published: 2000-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.26
Price in other shops: $13.00
The Riddle of the Compass: The Invention that Changed the World ImageThe Riddle of the Compass: The Invention that Changed the World
by Amir D. Aczel
Harvest Books; Published: 2002-05-02; Paperback; Book
Best price: $7.00
Price in other shops: $14.00
The Planets ImageThe Planets
by Dava Sobel
Viking Adult; Published: 2007-07-01; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $5.04
Price in other shops: $24.95
Galileo's Daughter: A Historical Memoir of Science, Faith, and Love ImageGalileo's Daughter: A Historical Memoir of Science, Faith, and Love
by Dava Sobel
Penguin (Non-Classics); Published: 2000-11-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.40
Price in other shops: $16.00
Longitude: The True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time ImageLongitude: The True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time
by Dava Sobel
Walker & Company; Published: 2007-10-30; Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.99
Price in other shops: $12.95
Longitude ImageLongitude
A&E; Release date: 2000-08-29; DVD
Best price: $9.89
Price in other shops: $39.95
Book store. Illustrated catalog of books on different categories