A sextant is a means of determining one’s position on the face of the earth, using a celestial body, reliable timepiece, nautical almanac, and sight reduction tables. Civilian use of the previously military-centric Global Positioning System was initiated in the ‘80s, though the cost of receivers for consumer use were de-graded, and expensive. As they were electronic, and relied on a constellation of low-earth orbit satellites, controlled by the US government, it was generally felt that backing up new technology with old was not only responsible, but necessary. Eventually, as the civilian side of the GPS system became more widespread among consumers and industry, celestial navigation was increasingly regarded as archaic. I contemplated selling my own sextant, but have since reconsidered, as the ongoing US administration of the GPS system seems less trustworthy than at any other time since its inception.

Back when I was a #boatbuilder at the #HenryRHinckleyCo in #SouthwestHarbor #Maine, I carefully received a first generation #GPS to install. At that time, it cost $5K+, and was regarded suspiciously, a risky proposition. Little did I know then, the tech was more reliable than government. #Sextant