Fire Control Computer
The ship's main battery consisted of nine sixteen-inch (406 mm) naval guns (16"/45 Cal) with a maximum range of 21 miles (34 km). Hitting a target at that distance required calculations including type of ammunition, own ship speed and course, target speed and course, wind speed and direction, atmospheric pressure and rotation of the earth. With no electronic computers, a mechanical computer such as this one in each of the main turrets did the job.
At Battleship Memorial Park, near Mobile, Alabama, I visited the Battleship Alabama (BB 60), a South Dakota-class battleship, now a museum ship. This battleship was launched and commissioned in 1942 and served in World War II in the Atlantic and Pacific theaters. She has been at this location as a museum ship since 1964. The park includes many other historical exhibits.
Fire Control Computer
The ship's main battery consisted of nine sixteen-inch (406 mm) naval guns (16"/45 Cal) with a maximum range of 21 miles (34 km). Hitting a target at that distance required calculations including type of ammunition, own ship speed and course, target speed and course, wind speed and direction, atmospheric pressure and rotation of the earth. With no electronic computers, a mechanical computer such as this one in each of the main turrets did the job.
At Battleship Memorial Park, near Mobile, Alabama, I visited the Battleship Alabama (BB 60), a South Dakota-class battleship, now a museum ship. This battleship was launched and commissioned in 1942 and served in World War II in the Atlantic and Pacific theaters. She has been at this location as a museum ship since 1964. The park includes many other historical exhibits.