History Fact Finder | Science and Invention - When Was The Compass First Used?

When was the compass first used?

It is believed that the compass, an instrument used for determining direction parallel to the Earth's surface, dates back to the first century B.C. At this time the Chinese learned that pieces of lodestone (an iron metal) always pointed North when placed on a flat surface. The discovery of Earth's magnetic field, electric energy carried between the North and South poles (extreme opposite points on Earth's axis), has been traced to the use of the lodestone. Arab sailors developed a similar nautical compass (instrument for determining direction at sea) as early as A.D. 600, introducing this device in other areas as they traveled. Their compass consisted of a magnetic needle that was freely suspended so that it turned until it was aligned with the Earth's North and South poles. The first known reference to compasses in Europe come from twelfth-century literature, indicating that European...

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