Celestial Globe

Catalogue number:
NASM 1957-635

Inscriptions:
"TAMAYA SHOTEN TOKYO GINZA" and "April 1942" in Japanese characters

Dimensions:
diameter about 6 inches

Discussion:
This globe was part of the equipment of the Tachikawa Ki-77, the Japanese airplane that flew some 11,000 miles without stopping or refueling. Although this flight was over Manchuria, it showed that flights could be made from Tokyo to New York. The globe shows only the brightest stars used for navigation, and is obviously copied from an English original. The signature and text are in Japanese, and the star names are in English. It has a wooden box, and metal horizon and meridian rings.

Further Information:

Tamaya
Star Finder