Monday 18 December 2017

The Alignment of Winter Solstice

I did manage to get out for two walks today, and also to conduct various bits of Christmas business, so I've been feeling a little bit better today. The warmer weather expected for today had still not arrived, and as I write, a mist is forming to ensure a tricky ride in to work in the morning.

Sunset today found the sky clear, and a strange effect took place along certain streets of Newark, as Winter Solstice approaches.

In neolithic times, the wise men of the day bought buildings and formations of stone that would align with the rising and setting of the sun, the moon, or perhaps the stars, at certain times of the year. Stonehenge is the rising of the sun at midsummer. At Newgrange the sun shines straight down the entrance to the burial chamber at midwinter. Some of the Nazca lines in Peru are reckoned to line up with the stars of Orion's belt.

Here in Newark, there are two streets aligned with the winter sun; Cartergate, where the orange glow at sunset lights up the three nail bars and four vape shops - and a Cash Converters! - and Millgate where orange rays light up the more socially acceptable housing and only the one beauty parlour.

Perhaps modern man, like his ancient coutnerpart, feels the need to line up his constructions with the forces of the universe. Perhaps it is ingrained in us.

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 18.12.17



7 comments:

  1. You may well be right Si - your photographs seem to prove the point at any rate.

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  2. THank you, perhaps we do have that innate desire!

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  3. Youve got me thinking. I shall do some sunset walks and check out the layout of the neighborhood.

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    1. Just remembered a while ago on YouTube I saw some Inuit pointing at the sun and saying it doesn't rise or set where it used to do for their ancestors. Maybe the land has moved or sunk a bit, but anyway it's probably worth a look, if you can find it that is.

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    2. Possibly due to the effects of precession, the inate wobble the earths axis has that changes the id of the Pole Star every few thousand years

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    3. That would make sense, since they'd presumably notice the effect of the wobble more than the rest of us with living relatively close to the North Pole.

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