Explanation:
Tomorrow's solstice marks the southernmost point of the Sun's
annual motion through planet Earth's sky and the
astronomicalbeginning of winter in the north.
In celebration of the northern winter solstice and the
International Year of
Astronomy 2009, you can watch a live
webcast of the
the
solstice sunrise from the
megalithic tomb of Newgrange,
in County Meath, Ireland.
Newgrange dates to 5,000 years ago, much older than
Stonehenge,
but also with accurate alignments to the solstice Sun.
In this view from within the burial mound's inner
chamber, the first rays of the solstice sunrise
are passing
through a box constructed above the entrance and
shine down an 18 meter long tunnel
to illuminate the floor at the foot of a decorated stone.
The actual stone itself would have been directly illuminated
by the solstice Sun 5,000 years ago.
The long time exposure also captures the ghostly figure of a more
modern astronomer in motion.
To watch the live webcast follow the indicated link below.
The webcast is planned to go live at 0830 coordinated Universal Time
(for
example, at 3:30am Eastern Time in the US) tomorrow, Sunday, the 21st.
Webcast of the solstice sunrise from Newgrange.
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