Whew! Thanks, Linda! My immediate reaction was that our earth is a big marble, and we all spin on the same axis... so how did the sun do that trick of coming up in the west down under?
Breathing at a regular rate again... Clay ----- Original Message ----- From: "Linda Walton" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: "Lace Chat" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Tuesday, November 11, 2003 4:59 AM Subject: Re: [lace-chat] Left/right/north/south > Dear Jean, and Lacemakers, > > > > There was a programme on TV the other night about the effect the moon has > on > > the earth. It had never occured to me until it was mentioned in that > > programme that in the southern hemisphere the sun and moon travel across > the > > sky from right to left instead of from left to right as it does in the > > northern hemisphere. I'd find that very disorientating. > > (snip) > > > > Jean in Poole > > > > No! No! The television people have got things confused again. > > I asked my husband, who instructs in astronomy and gliding in his spare > time, and he sent this message:- > > "The Sun still rises in the East and sets in the West in the Southern > hemisphere, it is that it is in the North, not the South that seem to > confuse people. > > "I remember when I was with the WRC we had a young Australian guy working > for > us (some sort of holiday job IIRC) and he turned up hours late to a site in > the > Midlands. It emerged that he had got totally lost because the Sun > was in the South, not the North. > > "I've asked gliding people and they claim not to be bothered as the Sun is > virtually overhead in SA and Oz, and they use GPS in any case." > > > Think about it: the Earth goes round as a whole sphere. There would only > be the effect of seeing the Sun going in opposite directions if the Earth > were divided at the Equator and the Northern Hemisphere were going in the > opposite direction to the Southern Hemisphere. > > However, if the Sun were, say, over the Equator, it would look as if it were > in the North if you were below the Equator, and as if it were in the South > if you were above the Equator. > > If you can remember the details of that television programme, I think you > should send them a crisp feedback message! > > Best wishes, > Linda Walton, > (in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, U.K., > where I can't see the Sun at all due to heavy fog, > which makes me feel so disinclined to start the things I ought to be doing). > > To unsubscribe send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] containing the line: > unsubscribe lace-chat [EMAIL PROTECTED] For help, write to > [EMAIL PROTECTED] To unsubscribe send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] containing the line: unsubscribe lace-chat [EMAIL PROTECTED] For help, write to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
