Wednesday, June 19, 2013

Ancient GPS Series: The Vikings on Board



The Norse Vikings, known as barbarians and explorers of the ancient seas, sailed across from Europe to America. Known to be the notorious raiders and rapists gang coming from coastlines, a rough façade, but how they could actually travel along the wild waters gave them a solid identity. 

GPS technology, how they could operate this modern system at the early century? How they could safely cruise at a remarkable distances? Are they a possessor of advanced technology? If they do, what is it? 

Sunstone, a kind of transparent calcite crystals that could polarize light, enough to produce a double image. This will then locate celestial positions particularly the sun even under a huge fog. 

Splitting light into different axis, and once held for the right position, it would create single image directing you into east-west direction. This mythical Viking stone is also known as Iceland spar. 

The technology actually label the Vikings to be one of the most technologically advanced culture in history. The great seafarers use this crystal to know the directions going to have a raid and going back to take home something. 

But who taught them the knowledge of polarization and the use of crystal for it, or it’s just a simple yet significant discovery? 

This GPS tool for navigation has been a mark and acknowledgement for the Norse that they were the first and the greatest explorers 500 years before Christopher Columbus discovered America.



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