Remarkable position at a remarkable time
Passenger ship SS Warrimoo was navigating the waters of the mid-Pacific on its way from Vancouver to Australia.
The navigator finished working out a star fix and brought Captain John DS. Phillips, the result. The Warrimoo’s position was LAT 0º 31’ N and LONG 179 30’ W. The date was 31 December 1899.
Do you k“Know what this means?”
First Mate Payton broke in, “We’re only a few miles from the intersection of the Equator and the International Date Line”.
Captain Phillips was smart enough to take full advantage of the opportunity for achieving the navigational freak of a lifetime.
He called his navigators to the bridge to check & double check the ship’s position. He changed course slightly so as to bear directly on his mark. Then he adjusted the engine speed.
The calm weather & clear night worked in his favor. At mid-night the SS Warrimoo lay on the Equator at exactly the point where it crossed the International Date Line.
The consequences of this bizarre position were many:
The bow of the ship was in the Southern Hemisphere & in the middle of summer.
The stern was in the Northern Hemisphere & in the middle of winter.
The date in the aft part of the ship was December 31, 1899.
The date in the forward part of the ship was January 1, 1900.
The result was that the ship was therefore concurrently in:
- two different days
- two different months
- two different years
- two different seasons
- two different centuries.
Reference: Euller, John (Sept.1953). “A freak of navigation”. Ships and the Sea. 3. p. 18
