Plural of chronometer; highly accurate instruments used to measure time, especially at sea where precise timekeeping was critical for navigation.
From Greek chronos (time) and metron (measure). Chronometers became essential during the Age of Exploration because sailors needed accurate clocks to calculate their longitude at sea.
The race to build accurate chronometers in the 1700s was as dramatic as any space race—winning the longitude prize meant fortune and glory, and John Harrison's chronometer literally changed naval history!
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