What is this diamond shaped thing slung below the rear flight deck of the Hosho Carrier, and what was its purpose? So far friends have taken bets it is either some form of radio antenna or flight director lights. If it IS a RF antenna, what was it used for (that the other antennas didn't accomplish)? 2 pictures.. One from a game and the second a RL picture. Thanks in advance.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/86/Hosho_1945_flight_deck.jpg
Fog/Night Signal.
When ships are operating in company in low visibility conditions the only real way to keep the formation together is to see the ship ahead of you, and the one behind see you.
Just like the brake light on your car means you can follow somebody ahead of you and see them better, the same idea applies here.
In fact the IJN and all navies practiced a great deal with this, and indeed the trip out to Midway put those skills to the test with multiple timed course changes occurring in heavy fog that went off relatively well.
Those are not the flight director lights as the flight director lights are located on the sides of the ship at an angle that an incoming aircraft can see see here. Similarly that doesn't look like a Japanese radio antenna either. I suspect instead that they are navigation lights for nearby vessels (analogous to turn signals).
I don't know the answer to this, but I bet someone who runs or participates in http://www.combinedfleet.com/ does. Try there if you don't get a good answer here.
