Hello All: Please excuse my flood of questions lately, but new ones keep coming up.
How do I answer this question that people have asked me over and over?: What is the largest sundial in the world and how does Kitt Peak compare? I don't want to make any claims that are untrue. Sounding too much like Clinton, I guess it all depends on how you define big. The size can refer to either the gnomon height, the gnomon length, the length of the gnomon base or the area of the dial face. It might even be defined by the maximum distance from the style to the furthest time point on the face. (In this case, you could difine largness by the width of the penumbra. The largest sundial in the world would have the widest penumbra. Jaipur's penumbra is only 10 cm wide whereas Kitt Peak's widest penumbra is 20 cm).Things get more complicated when you compare different types of sundials. The only other really big ones that I know about are The Jaipur equatorial, Team Disney in Orlando, and the Minami-Mura in Japan. I'm sure there must be others really big ones. I have dimensions of Jaipur, Disney and Kitt Peak. Here are the dimensions I have: Jaipur Equatorial Sundial: gnomon height: 27m, gnomon length: <30m, gnomon base: 44m, area: <1 acre Kitt Peak Sundial: gnomon height: 24m, gnomon length: 45m, gnomon base: 54m, face area: 685 sq. m Minami-Mura Sundial: Dimensions unknown Team Disney Sundial: gnomon height: 37m, gnomon length(not applicable), base of gnomon (not applicable), face area: unknown If you look at gnomon height, Team Disney is the biggest (37m). If you look at gnomon length, Kitt Peak is the biggest (45m). Kitt Peak also has the longest gnomon base (54m). But Jaipur occupies the largest area (almost an acre). What definition or combination of definitions should I use? What sundials have I missed that might be record-holder contenders for the largest sundial? How should I answer this difficult question that everybody's asking? Thanks John John L. Carmichael Jr. Sundial Sculptures 925 E. Foothills Dr. Tucson Arizona 85718 USA Tel: 520-696-1709 Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Website: <http://www.sundialsculptures.com> -
