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From: Arild Jensen (no email)
Date: Fri Jul 04 2003 - 02:08:52 EDT
-----Original Message-----
According to the curator at the Fram museum in Oslo, about 25% of the Viking
boats that attempted the crossing from Iceland to Greenland were lost. The
trip from the Norwegian coast to Iceland was a bit easier, both because of the
warmer Gulf Stream waters and the possibility of taking refuge in the Shetlands.
Still about 10% of the boats didn't make it. The Vikings were brave folk.
Larry Z
While at Poulsbo I came across a book titled "Secrets of the Viking Navigators"
by Leif K. Karlsen
Among the more interesting facts revealed was the possible use of "Sunstones"
(or optical quality Calcium Carbonate).
The crystal can be used to observe polarized light and this feature can reveal
the location of the sun even when below the horizon.
It is generally acknowledged that Viking navigators used what we call latitude
sailings. This method requires sun observations to work.
Hence any method to detect the correct position of the sun despite being below
the horizon ( common in high latitudes) or hidden by light surface fog
(another common feature) of northern latitude sailings.
The book also makes reference to research and tests that indicate the climate
during the period 750 AD - 1350 AD was much milder than now.
Other research reveals that the sea level was apparently about two feet higher
than at present.
In actual fact we now know that the crust is still rebounding from the weight of
the ice cap during the last ice age.
As the crust rises the sea level appears to lower. The change in sea level
would definitely alter the appearance of shore line, bays and river mouths.
All of this would support the notion that travel by Viking long ship was not
only possible but might even have been less arduous that making the same voyage
today.
This is not to say these voyages were any picnics. However it would appear that
they were no more difficult than the voyages of Christopher Columbus or
Ferdinand Magellan several centuries later.
That in turn supports the idea that many more voyages were made than those few
chronicled in the sagas.
Enough replica vessels have now been built to give a fair indication of how sea
worthy the longships can be.
If in fact they also possessed good and reliable navigation tools to enable
them to make consistent landfall, it raises some interesting possibilities.
Cheers
Arild
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