Tuesday 3 May 2016

GREENWICH OBSERVATORY: TIMEBALL IN ACTION

Alice (who is visiting from Canada) and I had a lovely sunny day together strolling through the grounds and buildings in Greenwich.  The Maritime Museum and Observatory are there -  lots to see; lots of history.

These photos show the Time Ball in resting position, then raised, then dropped at 1 pm.  Ships used to set their chronometers to this time-keeping mechanism.  Indeed, the building is in a prominant position on the bank of the Thames.

There are still a few time balls around the world, e.g. New York Times Square which everyone watches at 1 minute to midnight on New Year's Eve.




Alice noticed the sundog feature in the sky above us as we stood below the time ball on its dome looking upwards. 

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