North South Travel and the Concept of a Spherical Earth

Myron Kayton

Abstract:	elevation of the stars. Some of them used star elevations to navigate. This paper suggests that the prerequisites for inferring that the Earth is spherical, based on observing the change in star elevations were: - long-distance north-south travel, - political control over large areas, - written records. The paper suggests that many post-Neolithic civilizations along north-south rivers met these prerequisites. Only the Greeks, whose north-south travel took place on the Mediterranean Sea, interpreted the observations as implying a spherical Earth.
Published in:	Proceedings of the 47th Annual Meeting of The Institute of Navigation (1991) June 10 - 12, 1991 Williamsburg Hilton and National Conference Center Williamsburg, VA
Pages:	365 - 370
Cite this article:	Kayton, Myron, "North South Travel and the Concept of a Spherical Earth," Proceedings of the 47th Annual Meeting of The Institute of Navigation (1991), Williamsburg, VA, June 1991, pp. 365-370.
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