AP® World History: Modern · Unit 4 · Topic 4.1
Caravels, Lateen Sails, Compass, and Astrolabe
Watch it explained
- How it worksHow does a lateen sail let a ship move toward the wind instead of only away from it?
- How it worksWalk me through how a sailor uses an astrolabe and the North Star to find his latitude at sea.
- Worked exampleShow me a caravel, a carrack and a Chinese junk side by side with their cargo and their crew.
- Common mistakeWhy isn't a bigger ship automatically a better ocean-crossing ship?
- Going furtherWhat changes for a captain when he can find latitude but still cannot find longitude?
Check yourself
Your turn1 of 2
European shipwrights added a triangular lateen sail to vessels that had previously relied mainly on square sails, which could only catch wind blowing from behind the ship. What did the lateen sail's shape most directly let a ship do?End of topic.