Santa Barbara County
SANTA BARBARA — As a navigator serving on U.S. destroyers in the Pacific in the late 1950s, it was Thomas Anderle’s job to operate the sextant, an instrument that helps seafarers chart their course by measuring the distance between celestial objects and the horizon.
About 30 minutes after sunset, Anderle said the horizon would be “absolutely flat, just a perfect line,” providing him a ripe opportunity to get a clear read... (continued)