Skeptoid #1008: Facts and Fiction of Polynesian Navigation, Part 1

Skeptoid

Brian Dunning

Skeptic, Social Sciences, Skepticism, Paranormal, Conspiracy Theories, Urban Legends, Science, History

4.6 • 3K Ratings

🗓️ 30 September 2025

⏱️ 19 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Nearly as much mythology as science surrounds the wayfinder techniques used by early Polynesians to navigate the South Pacific.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	If you had no compass at all, and certainly not a GPS, and not even a chart, could you navigate a small boat to an island that's beyond the horizon, and that you don't even have a heading for?
0:15.0	The ancient Polynesians could, at least those among them trained in wayfinding, could. Or so we've been told, is this all truth, all fiction, or a mixture?
0:27.4	And that's coming up right now on Skeptoid.
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1:55.3	You're listening to Skeptoid. I'm Brian Dunning from Skeptoid.com. Facts and fiction of Polynesian navigation, part one. This episode was sponsored by Frederic Ranya, Skeptoid's Earl of Elixirs.
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