Martín Cortés de Albacar

[1] In 1551 he published the standard navigational textbook Arte de navegar (also known as Breve compendio).

[2] A decade later (1561), Arte de navegar became the earliest known English navigation manual up to date with all of the strategies used at the time.

[7] The text contained the earliest known description of the Nocturnal[8] and how to make and use a sea astrolabe[9][10] Cortés' calculations were critical in allowing explorers to ascertain their location when out of sight of land.

[7] In 1574, the mathematician William Bourne, produced a popular version of the book, entitled A Regiment for the Sea.

Bourne was critical of some aspects of Arte de Navegar and produced a manual of more practical use to the seaman.

Cortés moved to Cádiz in 1530 where he attended navigation school and quickly dedicated his life to being a teacher.

Commemorative plaque dedicated to Martín Cortés de Albacar on the town hall of Bujaraloz.
Martín Cortés is depicted in a portrait can be found in the Brief Compendium of the Sphera and the Art of Navigation, which was published in Seville in 1556. This illustration is currently held in the National Library of Spain.