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French ship Astrolabe (1817)
Encyclopedia
The Astrolabe was a horse barge
Barge
A barge is a flat-bottomed boat, built mainly for river and canal transport of heavy goods. Some barges are not self-propelled and need to be towed by tugboats or pushed by towboats...
converted to an exploration ship of the French Navy
French Navy
The French Navy, officially the Marine nationale and often called La Royale is the maritime arm of the French military. It includes a full range of fighting vessels, from patrol boats to a nuclear powered aircraft carrier and 10 nuclear-powered submarines, four of which are capable of launching...
. She is famous for her travels with Jules Dumont d'Urville
Jules Dumont d'Urville
Jules Sébastien César Dumont d'Urville was a French explorer, naval officer and rear admiral, who explored the south and western Pacific, Australia, New Zealand and Antarctica.-Childhood:Dumont was born at Condé-sur-Noireau...
.
The name derives from an early navigational instrument, the astrolabe
Astrolabe
An astrolabe is an elaborate inclinometer, historically used by astronomers, navigators, and astrologers. Its many uses include locating and predicting the positions of the Sun, Moon, planets, and stars, determining local time given local latitude and longitude, surveying, triangulation, and to...
, a precursor to the sextant
Sextant
A sextant is an instrument used to measure the angle between any two visible objects. Its primary use is to determine the angle between a celestial object and the horizon which is known as the altitude. Making this measurement is known as sighting the object, shooting the object, or taking a sight...
.
Legacy
The Astrolabe Subglacial BasinAstrolabe Subglacial Basin
Astrolabe Subglacial Basin is a subglacial basin to the south of the Adélie Coast and east of Porpoise Subglacial Highlands, trending north-south and containing the thickest ice — about — measured in Antarctica...
in Antarctica bears her name, as do the Astrolabe Glacier
Astrolabe Glacier
Astrolabe Glacier is a glacier wide and long, flowing north-northeast from the continental ice and terminating at the coast in a prominent tongue at the east side of Geologie Archipelago. It was probably first sighted in 1840 by the French expedition under Captain Jules Dumont d'Urville, although...
, the Astrolabe Needle
Astrolabe Needle
Astrolabe Needle is a conspicuous monolith rising above sea level south of Claude Point, Brabant Island, in the Palmer Archipelago. It was discovered by the French Antarctic Expedition under Jean-Baptiste Charcot, 1903–05, and named after the Astrolabe, one of the ships of the French...
, Astrolabe Island
Astrolabe Island
Astrolabe Island is an island long, lying in the Bransfield Strait northwest of Cape Ducorps, Trinity Peninsula. It was discovered by the French expedition, 1837–40, under Captain Jules Dumont d'Urville, and named by him for his chief expedition ship, the Astrolabe....
, Great Astrolabe Reef
Great Astrolabe Reef
The Great Astrolabe Reef is in Fiji and surrounds the fourth largest island, Kadavu Island, which is approximately 65 km in length. Kadavu Island is approximately 100 km south of Viti Levu, the main island of Fiji....
(off Kadavu island, Fiji
Fiji
Fiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...
) and Astrolabe Reef
Astrolabe Reef
Astrolabe Reef is near Motiti Island, off the Bay of Plenty coast in New Zealand. The reef, which breaks the water surface at low tide, is a renowned scuba diving spot that drops off to in different parts...
(New Zealand).