Winter Solstice 2011

[JUPITERASC]

The official onset of winter and the beginning of the end of the long, dark nights in the northern hemisphere is marked by the winter solstice, which in 2011 is at 5.30am (GMT) on Thursday 22 December.

The winter solstice happens because the Earth does not spin upright, but on an axis 23.5 degrees from vertical. As the Earth orbits the sun, it reaches the moment of winter solstice when the north pole is tilted furthest from the sun, making it the shortest day of the year.

Usually, the winter solstice occurs on the 21 December, but that can shift for the same reasons we have leap years: the Earth takes 365.25 days to orbit the sun, but the Gregorian calendar has only 365 days so each year the solstice is pushed back by around six hours.

"At extreme ends of the four year calendrical cycle the solstice can sometimes get shunted into the early hours of the 22nd, as it does this year. Next year is a leap year, which resets the calendar so that the winter solstice will fall on the 21st again," said Marek Kukula at the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, London.

In the northern hemisphere, the winter solstice marks the shortest day and the longest night.

The winter solstice is as far south as the sun ever gets, shining directly overhead along the Tropic of Capricorn, 23.5 degrees south of the equator.

[Rebel Uranian]

If there wasn't a winter solstice, we wouldn't have Capricorns, so go winter solstice! I know some annoying Capricorns, but most of the ones I can think of are cool.

[tsmall]

Blow, blow, thou winter wind,
Thou art not so unkind
As man's ingratitude;
Thy tooth is not so keen
Because thou art not seen,
Although thy breath be rude.
Heigh-ho! sing heigh-ho! unto the green holly:
Most friendship is feigning, most loving mere folly:
Then, heigh-ho! the holly!

..........

[ArchAngle42]

Just one correction, it is actually 365.256 days, as it coincides with Venus's 243 days of backwards spin and the musical interval ratio of 256:243. (Pythagorean Limma / Semi-Tone )

http://www.magisociety.com/__fibonac...index_full.php

Venus rotates on it axis (one Venus day) in 243 Earth days, Earth orbits the Sun in just over 365 Earth days, but in the 243 Earth years between alternate transits of Venus, 365 Venus-days will have passed. Venus orbits the Sun 13 times in 8 Earth-years.

[Moog]

Happy solstice everyone!

[Rebel Uranian]

Who cares about Christmas or the New Year's, we just care about the solstice! If I made the calendar, my New Year's would be on the solstice and there would be 360 days in a year.

[ArchAngle42]

365.256 is the correct sidereal year!

http://astronomy.nmsu.edu/kurt/Astro...er,Galileo.pdf

[Caprising]

Originally Posted by Rebel Uranian

Who cares about Christmas or the New Year's, we just care about the solstice! If I made the calendar, my New Year's would be on the solstice and there would be 360 days in a year.

December 25 is when the daylight hours start to become shorter, easter is when the daylight hours start to become longer.....that's why we celebrate christmas (death of the sun of god) on dec 25th and why we celebrate easter (the sun is reborn) at easter as the daylight hours begin to get longer! It's easy to see where christianity stole their dates from! In the southern hemishere the Length of the daylight hours are reversed, but an Aries is still an Aries down here in the south!

[Rebel Uranian]

Originally Posted by Caprising

but an Aries is still an Aries down here in the south!

Anyone have any theories why this works?

[Frank]

Originally Posted by Rebel Uranian

Anyone have any theories why this works?

Perhaps because it's still the same astrological sign?

[Rebel Uranian]

Yes, but why is it the same sign if it's not the same equinox?

[Larry69]

hahha

[Mark]

I hate to have to be "that guy" again so soon, but the days start getting longer on the summer solstice. Easter is a floating holiday (of varying definitions) that lands near the spring equinox.

[dr. farr]

Originally Posted by Rebel Uranian

Yes, but why is it the same sign if it's not the same equinox?

Its the same principle: equinoxes represent the principle of "equalness"; solstices represent the principle of "extremes"; although in the sourthern hemisphere it is the beginning of summer and in the north the beginning of winter, the principle of "extremes" still holds good.

Certainly elemental and humoral explanations do not hold valid here: eg,
Spring equinox North/ Autumn equinox south: elementally Spring is Air (warm and moist) and Autumn is Earth (cold and dry): yet Aries doesn't elementally match EITHER: Aries is Fire (warm and dry), although partially it touches the warm quality of the Northern Spring and the dry quality of the Southern Autumn; but, the Spring/North Autumn/South time do have one thing in common: they both have equalness (day and night), and Aries is the sign for that AREA OF SPACE ON THE ECLIPTIC where that equalness first occurs during the rolling year (where it occurs for the second time during the rolling year is the area of space on the ecliptic of Libra)

I do not subscribe to the various elemental/seasonal explanations generallky given for the "tropical signs of the zodiac"; I think there is a deeper and much more valid explanation, and a part of that explanation is what I have just posted.

[JUPITERASC]

Originally Posted by ArchAngle42

Just one correction, it is actually 365.256 days, as it coincides with Venus's 243 days of backwards spin and the musical interval ratio of 256:243. (Pythagorean Limma / Semi-Tone ) http://www.magisociety.com/__fibonaccichart1/index_full.php
Venus rotates on it axis (one Venus day) in 243 Earth days, Earth orbits the Sun in just over 365 Earth days, but in the 243 Earth years between alternate transits of Venus, 365 Venus-days will have passed. Venus orbits the Sun 13 times in 8 Earth-years.

Originally Posted by ArchAngle42

365.256 is the correct sidereal year!
http://astronomy.nmsu.edu/kurt/Astro...er,Galileo.pdf

Thanks for those useful links ArchAngle - not that I'm quibbling but (quibbles nevertheless) the even more correct sidereal year is not 365.256363 then?

Originally Posted by dr. farr

Its the same principle: equinoxes represent the principle of "equalness"; solstices represent the principle of "extremes"; although in the sourthern hemisphere it is the beginning of summer and in the north the beginning of winter, the principle of "extremes" still holds good.

Certainly elemental and humoral explanations do not hold valid here: eg,
Spring equinox North/ Autumn equinox south: elementally Spring is Air (warm and moist) and Autumn is Earth (cold and dry): yet Aries doesn't elementally match EITHER: Aries is Fire (warm and dry), although partially it touches the warm quality of the Northern Spring and the dry quality of the Southern Autumn; but, the Spring/North Autumn/South time do have one thing in common: they both have equalness (day and night), and Aries is the sign for that AREA OF SPACE ON THE ECLIPTIC where that equalness first occurs during the rolling year (where it occurs for the second time during the rolling year is the area of space on the ecliptic of Libra

to be clear then dr. farr
"THAT AREA OF SPACE ON THE ECLIPTIC where that equalness first occurs during the rolling year" is currently linked directly and/or directly related to the Image/constellation of Pisces and/or 'Sidereal 'Sign' Pisces (yet the same area of space on the ecliptic is currently and has for the past two thousand years been designated Tropical 'Sign' Aries) and "where it occurs for the second time during the rolling year is the area of space on the ecliptic" allocated to Tropical 'Sign' Libra as well as Sidereal 'Sign' Virgo and/or the Image/constellation of Virgo

Originally Posted by dr. farr

I do not subscribe to the various elemental/seasonal explanations generally given for the "tropical signs of the zodiac"; I think there is a deeper and much more valid explanation, and a part of that explanation is what I have just posted.

Thank you for your interesting informed comment regarding deeper and more valid explanations dr. farr and thank you for a part of that explanation!