History of Navigation

An international agreement introduced the Prime Meridian, located at 0° longitude, as a basis for establishing coordinates.

The first Gyrocompass was a poorly made device created in 1885. It was later perfected by Hermann Anschütz-Kaempfe in 1906. It is currently a requirement for naval ships.
The gyrocompass is unlike the magnetic compass because it does not use an external magnetic field. The gyrocompass is more accurate than the magnetic compass because it points in the direction of the earth's axis and cannot be disturbed by nearby metal such as the hull of a ship.

The first radio was created in Italy. They are used on board ships to communicate via long-distances.

Echo sounding was invented by Alexander Behm. Echo sounding is a device that determines depth and distance by using sound waves. It is currently used on most modern ships.

In 1934, researchers in the Naval Research Lavatory started experimenting with the way that radio waves would bounce off objects, after they noticed that occasionally other ships would block the path of the radio while at sea. In 1934 Robert Page created an instrument able to detect nearby aircraft and ships for navy boats.

The first long-range navigation device was created so a ships position could be located from land by using radio waves.

The ECDIS is a development in the navigational chart system used in naval ships and vessels. The ECDIS is a requirement under the SOLAS Convention.
With the introduction of an electronic chart system, it has become easier to navigate by pinpointing locations and attaining directions.

A ROTI or Rate of Turn Indicator is a device aboard modern ships that shows the rate at which a vessel is turning. ROTIs are mostly used upon naval ships.
In 1960 the SOLAS Convention was adopted into force by 1965. In Section V Regulation 19 of the Convention, it states that "All ships of 50,000 gross tonnage and upwards shall, in addition to meeting the requirements of paragraph 2.8, have: 2.9.1 a rate of turn indicator".

GPS was created when 22 satellites were built specifically for the purpose of sending position and coordinate data to ships at sea. These satellites have been replaced since, as they eventually stopped working.

Modern satellites launched into orbit around Earth mean that countries around the world have access to service such as internet and data, which can be used to transfer information across the globe instantaneously.
GPS, or global positioning system, is a satellite-based navigation system. The GPS system is controlled by the U.S. government's Department of Defence, however, it is open to the public for use. The earliest GPS system was launched between 1978 and 1985 with 11 satellites. It now consists of about 24 satellites that were launched into orbit in 1995. The GPS is a highly accurate navigation tool.

Hard copy log books are commonly used on vehicles such as planes and ships. They hold useful data about the ship with information such as it's history, capacity and maintenance.

The VDR is very closely akin to a Black Box Flight Recorder. It is used to record and store vital information about the ship and it's surroundings. The VDR became a necessity for all ships travelling long-distance.