ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Octant (instrument)

Well kiddo, do you know what a compass is? It's a tool that helps you find your way by telling you which direction is north, south, east, and west.

An octant is a little bit like a compass, but it's used to help sailors figure out where they are when they're out on the sea. You see, before we had fancy GPS or technology, sailors had to figure out their position by looking at the sun and stars.

The octant is kind of like a fancy mirror that helps the sailor measure the angle between the horizon and the sun or stars. By doing this, they can figure out how far north or south they are.

It's called an octant because it has 8 different sections, or "octants," that help the sailor get a really precise measurement. It's a really important tool for navigation, just like a compass is important for finding your way around on land.
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