The drop over 100 miles when the observer is near sea level is 6667.6173 feet.
It says nowhere in the text what the altitude is for the observer or the second location. If the observer is near sea level that means the second location can be a small rocky summit.
Read again what
Rowbotham wrote!
Zetetic Astronomy: EXPERIMENT 14.
In the account of the trigonometrical operations in France, by M. M. Biot and Arago, it is stated that the light of a powerful lamp, with good reflectors, was placed on a rocky summit, in Spain, called Desierto las Palmas, and was distinctly seen from Camprey, on the Island of Iviza. The elevation of the two points was nearly the same, and the distance between them nearly 100 miles. If the earth is a globe, the light on the rock in Spain would have been more than 6600 feet, or nearly one mile and a quarter, below the line of sight.
Bofore going into detail could interpret exactly what Rowbotham means by, "
The elevation of the two points was nearly the same, and the distance between them nearly 100 miles. If the earth is a globe, the light on the rock in Spain would have been more than 6600 feet, or nearly one mile and a quarter, below the line of sight."
That "below the line of sight" seems to be totally meaningless! What is his "line of sight"? Is it the:
- Horizontal from the observer? If so it is usually called "eye-level" but bears no relation to whether the target is is is not visible.
- Is it the "line of sight" joining the observer (here "on a rocky summit, in Spain, called Desierto las Palmas") to the target (here the fire at "Camprey, on the Island of Iviza")?
Either case seems meaningless and what matters is how much, if any, of the target is hidden and the 6666 feet is is meaningful only right on sea-level.
But,
if Rowbotham is correct, it cannot "be a small rocky summit"; he wrote, "
a powerful lamp, with good reflectors, was placed on a rocky summit, in Spain, called
Desierto las Palmas" and
Desierto las Palmas is a mountain range! A rocky summit on a mountain range can hardly be near sea level!
The second location where the light is located is also referred to as "the light on the rock". It says rock, not mountain. None of this, except for your own assumptions and lies, says that the locations are on the peaks of mountains.
Leave the accusations of lies out of this,
Mr Bishop, thank you.
What you call "The second location", Rowbotham calls "Camprey, on the Island of Iviza". He means "Campvey" and today that name seems to apply to "Restaurente Es Camp Vell" 182 m high, somewhat inland, at 39° 2'21.77"N, 1°22'58.45"E and with no view towards
Desierto las Palmas.
But other sources than Rowbotham refer to Mount Campvey.
And these other sources including the one Rowbotham may have used as his seem to differ from Rowbotham's brief account in at least one other aspect; they all put the signal-light on Ibiza and it was finally observed from
I have been trying to find a source of Rowbotham's "
a powerful lamp, with good reflectors, was placed on a rocky summit" because accounts by Arago etc did not seem to mention the "powerful lamp, with good reflectors".
They did, however, say that the
observer was on
Desierto las Palmas and finally "saw the signal-lights on
Mount Campvey in the Island of Iviza".
And I finally found this,
A description and list of the lighthouses of the world, 1861 [electronic resource] / by Alexander G. Findlay in various place.
An in there it referred to:
"on
a rocky summit, in Spain, called Desierto las Palmas."
As near as I can find, this is seems to be a copy of same source that Rowbotham used:
Popular Science Dec 1886 p 261
Rowbotham wrote, "was placed on a rocky summit, in Spain, called Desierto las Palmas".
Arago wrote, "Arago established himself on a rocky summit, in Spain, called
Desierto las Palmas, the summit of which hardly afforded room enough for his tent and instruments."
Then Rowbotham writes, "was distinctly seen from Camprey, on the Island of Iviza" but "Camprey" is simply a misreading of "Campvey" or "Camp Vey".
But now Camp Vell is the somewhat inland "Restaurente Es Camp Vell" 182 m high at 39° 2'21.77"N, 1°22'58.45"E and with no view towards
Desierto las Palmas. But sources other than Rowbotham all seem to refer to "Mount Campvey".
Desierto las Palmas is a very large area of land on a coast, not any specific mountain.
No,
Desierto las Palmas is not just "a very large area of land on a coast". Just look up
Desierto las Palmas and you'll find it is a
mountain range!
Desert de les Palmes Mountains
Desert de les Palmes (Valencian pronunciation: [deˈzɛɾd de les ˈpalmes], Spanish: Desierto de las Palmas), also known as Serra del Desert de les Palmes is an 18.8 km long mountain range in the Plana Alta comarca, Valencian Community, Spain. Its highest point is Bartolo (729 m).
The Ermita de La Magdalena 40°02′04″N 0°00′20″W, an important church for Castellonenc people, is located on a hill at the southern end of the range. The Prime Meridian crosses the Desert de les Palmes roughly in the middle.