It is hard correcting for the difference between true north and magnetic north. Around here (Massachusetts) they are about 15 degrees different - but who can remember which way? The idea of the stupid sheet is to show the major celestial events: solstices and equinoxes - as they would appear in their relative positions on a magnetic compass. This way you do not have to be too smart to use it. Just set the compass down on top of the paper so that the vertical "north" matches the compass north. Then you can read off the directions to various celestial events. In the winter soltice video, you can pick off the solstice sunrise direction as about "4 oclock" - which is supposed to match the direction of the "head" sticking out of the rock.
Monday, June 19, 2006
The stupid sheet
It is hard correcting for the difference between true north and magnetic north. Around here (Massachusetts) they are about 15 degrees different - but who can remember which way? The idea of the stupid sheet is to show the major celestial events: solstices and equinoxes - as they would appear in their relative positions on a magnetic compass. This way you do not have to be too smart to use it. Just set the compass down on top of the paper so that the vertical "north" matches the compass north. Then you can read off the directions to various celestial events. In the winter soltice video, you can pick off the solstice sunrise direction as about "4 oclock" - which is supposed to match the direction of the "head" sticking out of the rock.
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