uncommon questions - pendulums, gravity and inertia
28 Aug 2024Watchmaker John Harrison solved the problem of determining the longitude in navigation by constructing an extremely accurate watch. His first model was running fast, which he attributed to centrifugal acceleration of the ships changing course. Why can this be and why does it bias the measurement only in one way? Please estimate the magnitude of the effect and argue why it is indistinguishable from gravity.