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← HistoryWhich navigation error increases when a ship's chronometer experiences significant temperature variations due its construction?
A)Increased error in longitude calculation✓
B)Decreased accuracy of celestial observation
C)Overestimation of vessel's speed
D)Underestimation of solar altitude
💡 Explanation
When a chronometer experiences temperature variations, thermal expansion causes changes in the balance wheel's oscillation rate because the temperature compensation is insufficient, leading to timekeeping errors. Therefore, error in measuring longitude increases, rather than observation errors or speed miscalculations which originate from separate sources and instruments.
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