What was the accuracy of the latitude and longitude measurements on maps and charts used in the 16th century (I've done some research on maps that indicates they did have latitude and longitude, but I could be mistaken. If so, just correct me ) Thanks! Like, could you pinpoint a location with a several square mile radius based up the cordinates or would they be way off. Thanks!
The first person to come up with the idea for latitude/longitude lived during the latter half of the 15th century. So, they did have a coordinate system in the 16th century, but it wasn't accurate until the 1600s and the 1700s. I'm not sure about the exact accuracy of it. For places on land, I'm sure it would not be that hard to get to your destination. Usually, following a landmark such as river made it easier to get to the destination if the destination was far away. Finding small islands or anything else in the water would be hard, even with a coordinate system. The way they measure latitude and longitude has to do with the position of the moon. So, I imagine it would be hard to figure out your exact coordinates if you're stranded at sea, but I wouldn't say it's impossible.
Thanks. I might change it around so the longitude and latitude play a role, but landmarks are more inportant.
