Latitude Finder

In this diagram, the altitude or angle of elevation of the North Star above the horizon at any point on the earth gives the local latitude. It is applicable only for the Northern Hemisphere, where the North Star is visible. Below is an experiment demonstrating the same.

Home Made Equatorial Sundial

Once I got the basic idea of how the Equatorial Sundial works, I tried making one myself.
An image of it is furnished below. showing either faces of the dial.




This one I made at ease, and it took me about two days to make it single handed.

Understanding the Equatorial Sundial

This is a simple diagram of the Equatorial Sundial.

The Equatorial Sundial (also called the equinoctial dial), consists of a disc with two faces, each marked in radial lines representing the hours; a gnomon, representing the earth's axis. The dial face is always parallel to the equator, which defines its name. Like all sundials having a fixed gnomon, the Equatorial Sundial also has lines marked at 15 degree interval per hour.

"An equatorial sundial is actually a reduced model of the Earth, similar to a globe with its upper and lower halves removed: the dial plate represents the plane of the Earth's Equator; the gnomon represents the Earth's axis of rotation. The upper dial face represents the Northern Hemisphere; the lower dial face represents the Southern Hemisphere."

(definition derived from "The Sandburg State of Sky Awareness" http://www.wsanford.com/~wsanford/exo/sundials/equatorial_sundials.html)