Brass Sextants
Brass
sextant is a very important instrument for navigating at sea that can also
be used in astronomy. It is used to measure the angle between two far away
objects. Most often these objects are the sun and the horizon, or the pole
star and the horizon. Sometimes the angle between the horizon and stars or
the moon can also be measured with a brass sextant. Brass sextants are
polished to a high-luster finish. Decorative brass sextant makes a unique gift for nautical buffs. Brass sextants generally have a wide frame, fully adjustable mirror mounts, a turned hardwood handle and heavy filter mounts. These have a built-in large and powerful magnifier that can be swung into position to assist in reading the vernier scale. The telescope has a focusing adjustment and provides a clear image. The half-silvered mirror allows viewing the horizon and the celestial object simultaneously and adjusting the fine tuning control causes these two images to converge and determines the angle between the celestial object and the horizon.
