sextant

Definition

A navigational device for deriving angular distances between objects so as to determine latitude and longitude.

Etymology

From Latin sextāns.

Example Sentences

• "[…] I can do more with a Quadrant, Sextant or Octant, of 1 foot Radius, furniſhed with Teleſcopical Sights and Screws, then ^([sic]) can poſſibly be done with any other Inſtrument, furniſhed only with Common Sights, though 10, 20, 30, nay threeſcore foot Radius; […]"
• "I took our position every morning with my crude sextant; but the results were always most unsatisfactory."
• "Moskowitz and Devereux have designed a hyperaccurate sextant for interstellar navigation based upon the design of the sextant used by the Apollo astronauts."

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