The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1933-12-07
-0ietZ on Science
sun MOVES TO
SOUTHWARK FOR
WINTERS DEBUT
Cold SoIStiCe Will Begin
Early in Morning OF
Dec. ~.
BY DAVID DIETZ
scripps- Howard Science Editor

Day and night skies combine to
herald the advent Of winter. Each
day the sun rises little farther
south Of east. climbs little less
high in the sky at noon and sets
a little farther south Of west. AS
a consequence. it rises later each
day. stays a shorter time above the
horizon. and sets earlier.
On Dec. %, il will rise farthest
south of east, be its lowest in the
sky at noon. and set at its farthest
south of west. For Dec. % is the
first day Of winter.
The sun now is in that portion Of
the ecliptic, as its apparent path
among the stars is called, which Is
south Of the celestial equator. Daily
it is moving to the southwark.
At 1853 p. m. on Dec. % 1t will
reach the point in the ecliptic
which is farthest south of the
equator. This point is known as
the winter solstice and at that in
slant winter will begin. Then the
sun will begin its northward jour
ney.
Skies Show Change
To one who knows the stars the
night skies also proclaim the coming
of winter.
ScorpiO, the celestial scorpion who
ruled the southern sky in summer
and sank low upon the horizon IN
autumn, has disappeared entirely.
Orion, the mighty hunter, who
came over the eastern horizon as
Scorpio sank below the western one,
now blazes brilliantly in the south
eastern sky.
Orion made his appearance about
Halloween Now he stands forth
in all his glory.
A diagonal row of three bright
stars marks the belt of the hunter.
Three stars hanging in a row from
the belt, mark mis- sword. Above the
belt. Betelgeuse, a bright red star,
marks the shoulder Of Orion.
And now that Thanksgiving day
has followed Halloween into the
past. OriOns two hunting dogs fol-
low him over the eastern horizon,
CAMS Major, the greater dog, and
CAMS Minor. the lesser dog.
Brightest Star in Group
Both consultations will be found
low on the eastern horizon below
Orion. Each constellation may be
recognized by its brightest star.
CAMS Major is nearer Orion, It's
chief star is Sirius, the dog star,
brightest of all stars in the Ravens
It shines with brilliant white light
Sirius. because it is the brightest
star in the heavens, always has at
traCted The attention of mankind.
Consequently it is famed in the
history of antiquity. Many of the
Egyptian temples were built so that
Sirius, at the time of its rising
showed through the portals and
upon the altar.
Chronicles Of the rising and set
ting of Sirius are to be found in
both the ancient Chaldean and
Egyptian records. The star was de-
fed by the Egyptians who called it
the Nile star"
Start of Dog Days"
The ancient Romans called the
days of midsummer the dog days
because of an idea that it was ST.
RUS, which by adding its rays to
those of the sun in midsummer,
made the days so hot.
= OF course, this notion had no
foundation in fact, for the amount
of heat received from Sirius is in
finitesimal. This is not because ST.
RUS is weak. Actually, Sirius is
twanty-six times brighter than our
own sun. 1t is because Sirius is SO
far away 1t is so far away that
its light takes 8.65 years to reach
us. Light goes six trillion miles
in one year,
Only five stars in the heavens
are closer to the earth than is ST.
RUS. Alpha Centauri, a star in the
constellation of the centaur, visible
only in southern ATTITUDES, usually
has been considered the nearest Of
all stars But within recent years,
astronomers have decided that
Proxima Centwi. another star in
the same constellation, is a little
closer.