Survey and Science
Abstract Between 1818 and 1839, a series of Royal Navy expeditions searched the Arctic in hope of finding a North-West Passage that would connect the North Atlantic with the Pacific. Ostensibly intended to expand Britain’s trade routes and commerce, these voyages were also moments of considerable sc...
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| Format: | Book Part |
| Language: | English |
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Oxford University PressOxford
2023
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| Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780198890959.003.0004 https://academic.oup.com/book/chapter-pdf/58157104/oso-9780198890959-chapter-4.pdf |
| Summary: | Abstract Between 1818 and 1839, a series of Royal Navy expeditions searched the Arctic in hope of finding a North-West Passage that would connect the North Atlantic with the Pacific. Ostensibly intended to expand Britain’s trade routes and commerce, these voyages were also moments of considerable scientific activity. In particular, the magnetic research of Edward Sabine, John Franklin, and James Clark Ross transformed these expeditions into celebrated inquiries into natural phenomena. Most famously, Ross’s discovery of the north magnetic pole in 1831 stirred unrivalled enthusiasm in British audiences for further magnetic investigation. The problem, however, with furthering philosophical understanding of terrestrial magnetism, was the limits of nineteenth-century instrumentation. So when John Franklin read of Robert Were Fox’s design of a new, robust dipping needle, he travelled down to Falmouth to see it for himself. Subsequently, throughout the 1830s, Fox’s instrument gained increasing reputation with Britain’s scientific elites through its performance on the ongoing magnetic survey of the British Isles. This chapter examines the rise of Fox’s dipping needle from its Cornish origins to becoming the nation’s premier device for obtaining magnetic measurements. By 1839, it was the obvious choice for future magnetic research. |
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