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Winds In The Age Of Sail
The captain of a steam ship naturally chooses the shortest route to nearby destinations. Since a sailing ship is usually pushed by winds and currents, its captain must find a route where the wind will probably blow in the right direction. Tacking, i.e. using contrary wind to pull (sic) the sails, was always possible but wasted time because of the zigzagging required, and this would significantly delay long voyages. The early European explorers were not only looking for new lands. They also had to discover the pattern of winds and currents that would carry them where they wanted to go. During the age of sail winds and currents determined trade routes and therefore influenced European imperialism and modern political geography. For an outline to the main wind systems see Global wind patterns. Pilotage or cabotage, in one sense, is the art of sailing along the coast using known landmarks. Navigation, in one sense, is the art of sailing long distances out of sight of land. Although ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tacking (sailing)
Tacking is a sailing maneuver by which a sailing vessel, whose desired course is into the wind, turns its bow toward and through the wind so that the direction from which the wind blows changes from one side of the boat to the other, allowing progress in the desired direction. The opposite maneuver to tacking is called 'jibe', or 'wearing' on square-rigged ships, that is, turning the stern through the wind. No sailing vessel can move directly upwind, though that may be the desired direction, making this an essential maneuver of a sailing ship. A series of tacking moves, in a zig-zag fashion, is called beating, and allows sailing in the desired direction. This maneuver is used for different effects in races, where one ship is not only sailing in a desired direction, but also concerned with slowing the progress of competitors. The need for tacking Sailing ships cannot proceed directly into the wind, but often need to go in that direction. Movement is achieved by tacking. If a v ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Volta Do Mar
, , or (the phrase in Portuguese means literally 'turn of the sea' but also 'return from the sea') is a navigational technique perfected by Portuguese navigators during the Age of Discovery in the late fifteenth century, using the dependable phenomenon of the great permanent wind circle, the North Atlantic Gyre. This was a major step in the history of navigation, when an understanding of winds in the age of sail was crucial to success: the European sea empires would not have been established without an understanding of the trade winds. History Portuguese discovery in the Atlantic Ocean The was a sailing technique discovered in successfully returning from the Atlantic islands, where the pilot first had to sail far to the west in order to catch usable following winds, and return to Europe. This was a counter-intuitive sailing direction, as it required the pilot to steer in a direction that was perpendicular to the ports of Portugal. Lack of this information may have doomed ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Treaty Of Alcáçovas
The Treaty of Alcáçovas (also known as Treaty or Peace of Alcáçovas-Toledo) was signed on 4 September 1479 between the Catholic Monarchs of Castile and Aragon on one side and Afonso V and his son, Prince John of Portugal, on the other side. It put an end to the War of the Castilian Succession, which ended with a victory of the Castilians on land ↓ Bailey W. Diffie and George D. Winius ''“In a war in which the Castilians were victorious on land and the Portuguese at sea, ...”'' i ''Foundations of the Portuguese empire 1415–1580'' volume I, University of Minnesota Press, 1985p.152 and a Portuguese victory on the sea. ↓ Historian Malyn Newitt: ''“All things considered, it is not surprising that the Portuguese emerged victorious from this first maritime colonial war. They were far better organised than the Castilians, were able to raise money for the preparation and supply of their fleets and had clear central direction from ... '' rince/nowiki>'' John.”'' I ''A his ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lopes Gonçalves
Lopes Gonçalves or Lopo Gonçalves was a Portuguese explorer of the African coast. He was the first European sailor to cross the equator, the first to reach the point where the coast turns south and the first to reach Gabon. In 1473 or 1474 he and Rui de Sequeira, pushing Portuguese exploration east along the Nigerian coast, reached the point where the coast begins to run south. He followed it south, crossed the equator, passed Cape Lopez Cape Lopez () is a headland on the coast of Gabon, west central Africa. The westernmost point of Gabon, it separates the Gulf of Guinea from the South Atlantic Ocean. Cape Lopez is the northernmost point of a low, wooded island between two mouths ... in Gabon, which is named after him, and reached Cape St. Catherine, which is about 2 degrees south. References * J. H. Parry, The Age of Reconnaissance, 1963, page 149 Portuguese explorers 15th-century explorers of Africa 15th-century Portuguese people Maritime history of Portugal [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gold Coast (region)
The Gold Coast was the name for a region on the Gulf of Guinea in West Africa that was rich in gold, petroleum, sweet crude oil and natural gas. This former region is now known as the country Ghana. Etymology and position The Gold Coast, Slave Coast, Pepper Coast (or Grain Coast) and Ivory Coast were named after the main export resources found there, respectively. Early uses of the term ''Gold Coast'' refer strictly to the coast and not the interior. It was not until the 19th century that the term came to refer to areas that are far from the coast. The Gold Coast was to the east of the Ivory Coast and to the west of the Slave Coast. Territorial entities Gold Coast region territorial entities were: * Portuguese Gold Coast (Portuguese, 1482–1642) * Dutch Gold Coast (Dutch, 1598–1872) * Swedish Gold Coast (Swedes, 1650–1658; 1660–1663) * Couronian Gold Coast (Duchy of Courland and Semigallia, 1651–1661) * Danish Gold Coast ( Denmark-Norway, 1658–1850) * Bran ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Guinea Current
The Guinea Current is a slow warm water current that flows to the east along the Guinea coast of West Africa. It has some similarity to the Equatorial Counter Current in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. See also * Ocean currents * Oceanic gyres In oceanography, a gyre () is any large system of circulating ocean currents, particularly those involved with large wind movements. Gyres are caused by the Coriolis effect; planetary vorticity, horizontal friction and vertical friction determine ... * Physical oceanography Currents of the Atlantic Ocean {{Marine-current-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Doldrums
The Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ ), known by sailors as the doldrums or the calms because of its monotonous windless weather, is the area where the northeast and the southeast trade winds converge. It encircles Earth near the thermal equator though its specific position varies seasonally. When it lies near the geographic Equator, it is called the near-equatorial trough. Where the ITCZ is drawn into and merges with a monsoonal circulation, it is sometimes referred to as a monsoon trough, a usage that is more common in Australia and parts of Asia. Meteorology The ITCZ was originally identified from the 1920s to the 1940s as the ''Intertropical Front'' (''ITF''), but after the recognition in the 1940s and the 1950s of the significance of wind field convergence in tropical weather production, the term ''Intertropical Convergence Zone'' (''ITCZ'') was then applied. The ITCZ appears as a band of clouds, usually thunderstorms, that encircle the globe near the Equator. In the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cape Palmas
Cape Palmas is a headland on the extreme southeast end of the coast of Liberia, Africa, at the extreme southwest corner of the northern half of the continent. The Cape itself consists of a small, rocky peninsula connected to the mainland by a sandy isthmus. Immediately to the west of the peninsula is the estuary of the Hoffman River. Approximately 21 km (15 mi) further along the coast to the east, the Cavalla River empties into the sea, marking the border between Liberia and the Côte d'Ivoire. It marks the western limit of the Gulf of Guinea, according to the International Hydrographic Organization (IHO). Approached from the sea, there are several landmarks at the cape. Offshore from the estuary of the Hoffman lies the small, oblong shape of ''Russwurm Island'', which was named after the first black governor of Maryland In Africa (later Republic of Maryland), John Brown Russwurm. This island is connected to the peninsula by a breakwater. There is also a lighthouse warn ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cape Verde Islands
, national_anthem = () , official_languages = Portuguese , national_languages = Cape Verdean Creole , capital = Praia , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , demonym = Cape Verdean or Cabo Verdean , ethnic_groups_year = 2017 , government_type = Unitary semi-presidential republic , leader_title1 = President , leader_name1 = José Maria Neves , leader_title2 = Prime Minister , leader_name2 = Ulisses Correia e Silva , legislature = National Assembly , area_rank = 166th , area_km2 = 4033 , area_sq_mi = 1,557 , percent_water = negligible , population_census = 561,901 , population_census_rank = 172nd , population_census_year = 2021 , population_density_km2 = 123.7 , population_density_sq_mi = 325.0 , population_density_rank = 89th , GDP_PPP ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Azores
) , motto =( en, "Rather die free than subjected in peace") , anthem= ( en, "Anthem of the Azores") , image_map=Locator_map_of_Azores_in_EU.svg , map_alt=Location of the Azores within the European Union , map_caption=Location of the Azores within the European Union , subdivision_type=Sovereign state , subdivision_name=Portugal , established_title=Settlement , established_date=1432 , established_title3=Autonomous status , established_date3=30 April 1976 , official_languages=Portuguese , demonym= ( en, Azorean) , capital_type= Capitals , capital = Ponta Delgada (executive) Angra do Heroísmo (judicial) Horta (legislative) , largest_city = Ponta Delgada , government_type=Autonomous Region , leader_title1=Representative of the Republic , leader_name1=Pedro Manuel dos Reis Alves Catarino , leader_title2= President of the Legislative Assembly , leader_name2= Luís Garcia , leader_title3= President of the Regional Government , leader_name3=José Manuel Bolieiro , le ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Madeira
) , anthem = ( en, "Anthem of the Autonomous Region of Madeira") , song_type = Regional anthem , image_map=EU-Portugal_with_Madeira_circled.svg , map_alt=Location of Madeira , map_caption=Location of Madeira , subdivision_type=Sovereign state , subdivision_name=Portugal , established_title=Discovery , established_date=1418-1419 , established_title2=Settlement , established_date2=c. 1425 , established_title3=Autonomous status , established_date3=30 April 1976 , named_for = en, wood ( pt, madeira) , official_languages=Portuguese , demonym= en, Madeiran ( pt, Madeirense) , capital = Funchal , government_type=Autonomous Region , leader_title1=Representative of the Republic , leader_name1=Irineu Barreto , leader_title2=President of the Regional Government of Madeira , leader_name2=Miguel Albuquerque , leader_title3=President of the Legislative Assembly , leader_name3=José Manuel Rodrigues , legislature= Legislative Assembly , national_representation=National ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Guanches
The Guanches were the indigenous inhabitants of the Canary Islands in the Atlantic Ocean some west of Africa. It is believed that they may have arrived on the archipelago some time in the first millennium BCE. The Guanches were the only native people known to have lived in the Macaronesian archipelago region before the arrival of Europeans, as there is no accepted evidence that the other Macaronesian archipelagos (the Cape Verde Islands, Madeira and the Azores) were inhabited. After the Spanish conquest of the Canaries starting in the early 15th century, many natives were wiped out by the Spanish settlers while others interbred with the settler population, although elements of their culture survive within Canarian customs and traditions, such as Silbo (the whistled language of La Gomera Island). In 2017, the first genome-wide data from the Guanches confirmed a North African origin and that they were genetically most similar to ancient North African Berber peoples of the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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