Hello, In terms of astronomical/navigational tables useful resources may (?) include: Dick, S. J. (2002). Sky and Ocean Joined: The U.S. Naval Observatory 1830-2000. Cambridge University Press: Cambridge. Not to be confused with another source I think might be useful: Sky With Ocean Joined - Proceedings of the Sesquicentennial Symposia U.S. Naval Observatory - December 5 and 8, 1980 (1983) Eds Dick, Steven J., And Leroy E. Doggett (Author) A short piece of relevance by some of the people at the American Nautical Almanac office looking back through its history as computerization had fully taken hold: The Almanacs—Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow P. K. Seidelmann, P. M. Janiczek and R. F. Haupt (U.S. Naval Observatory) The Journal of Navigation , Volume 30 , Issue 2 , May 1977 , pp. 310 - 322 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S037346330004399X This is just a few starting points. In my PhD thesis I concerned myself with the much more limited quesiton of the way astronomical calculation including a few of the key calculations for navigation tables were automated. The main subject of my research (W J Eckert) was head of the Amercan Nautical Alamanac Office during World War II and I discuss his work during the war a little and his other work before and after the war had some significance for astronomical and navigational tables. https://tspace.library.utoronto.ca/handle/1807/29830 -- Yours Truly, Allan Olley, PhD http://individual.utoronto.ca/fofound On Mon, 4 Apr 2022, Bernard Geoghegan wrote:
Dear Colleagues,
Can anyone recommend key works on 18th-20th c. astronomical, nautical, and maritime charts, esp as a pre-history to modern information processing? I’m trying to write a history of how 19th c. visuality was pieced together at sea, from a patchwork of observations, charts, tables, astrolabes, etc, in which a regime of calculations and information processing figure centrally in making visual sense of the surrounding world.
To give a very general idea of where I’m coming from, I’ve found some very useful work in the Campbell-Kelly et al volume on “The History of Mathematical Tables,” and Mindell’s work on naval systems of artillery control has also been an inspiring point of reference.
Thank for your thoughts on further sources!
Warmly, Bernard