US Navy 7-inch Marine Telescopic Alidade MK-7

A cased US Navy 7-inch marine Alidade, telescope, MK-7 Mod. 0 artifact comes to us and is being sold for the US Zuni- USCG Tamaroa Foundation.

The plate mounted on top of the alidade is inscribed: 7 inch marine Alidade, telescope, MK-7 Mod. 0 Navy Dept- Bureau of Ships. Contractor: Optic Electronics Corp., Contract N104-14278A (not dated). Matching label is affixed to the top of the storage case. Features a fully Adjustable Eyepiece with screw-bezel cover when not in use. Mounted and turns on to a horizontal ring A second ring is stored inside the lid of the storage box. A bubble level is mounted below the telescopic objective lens. Original navy grey paint with some paint loss from use. These types of telescopic alidades are still used aboard US naval ships today! An exceptional US Navy instrument with clear, adjustable optics.

Photo below: A sailor on the bridge of the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier uses a telescopic alidade. An alidade is an instrument used for determining direction, to take a bearing. An alidade allows one to sight a distant object and use the line of sight to perform a task. This task can be, for example, to draw a line on a plane table in the direction of the object or to measure the angle to the object from some reference point. Angles measured can be horizontal, vertical or in any chosen plane. The alidade's primary use is for creating maps in the horizontal plane.