Numerical simulations of Columbus’ Atlantic crossings
1992
Goldsmith, Roger A. | Richardson, Philip L.
The transatlantic route of Columbus was simulated incorporating historical winds, currents and hypothetical magneticvariation in order to estimate where the first landfall occured. Earlier simulations using an 1899 map by Van Bemmelenand assuming zero magnetic variation in the Bahamas to produce a landfall near San Salvador (Watlings Island). Newtheories postulating a Geometric league of 2.67 nautical miles and a westerly magnetic variation of approximately onepoint (11.25°) for the western terminus result in a landfall near the Turks and Caicos Islands. A westerly variation of thismagnitude in the Bahamas has been inferred from early charts - the islands are shown several degrees too far north, whichwould have occurred if early navigators had been set imperceptibly southward by westerly variation - by studies ofdirections within the islands, and by studies of early navigation books. The simulation of subsequent voyages by Columbuslend further weight to a westerly variation of about one point in the region of Bahamas. Our work shows that a Grand Turklandfall cannot be ruled out based on the transatlantic portion of the voyage as has been suggested in the past. A moreaccurate simulation of the voyage and first landfall still requires a more accurate representation of the field of magneticvariation.
Show more [+] Less [-]Funding was provided by a grant from the Nova Albion Foundation and theGovernment of the Turks and Caicos Islands.
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