L'astronomie nautique au XVIIIème siècle en France: tables de la lune et longitudes en mer

Published as a scholarly investigation into the maritime history of the Enlightenment, this volume examines the critical intersection of celestial navigation and French naval power. It was written by Guy Boistel, a historian specializing in the history of astronomy and scientific instruments, to document the intense efforts of the French Royal Academy of Sciences and the Navy to solve the long-standing problem of determining longitude at sea during the eighteenth century.

The work serves as a comprehensive analysis of the lunar distance method and the evolving tables that allowed navigators to translate astronomical observations into spatial coordinates. Boistel focuses on the institutional and technical challenges faced by astronomers and naval officers, placing the development of nautical ephemerides within the broader context of the Age of Discovery and the rise of precise maritime cartography.