(Untitled)

[debitage]

debitage: the sharp-edged waste material left over from the production of a stone tool, useful in identifying quarries and workshops.

debitage: the waste material left over from the production of fiction and papers, generally useless.

Comments

[beccastareyes]

I'm sure at least a precise-enough-for-naked-eye-stargazing idea exists. Note that it's not precise (which shouldn't matter that much over only 2000 years, but I can't tell you how far off it is.)

Okay, the online program I normally use only goes back to 1600, and I think I forgot the disk with my software at my mother's house, so I'm gonna have to give you a bit of a more roundabout procedure. If it's too complcated, give me the date and I can try to find it.

1. Go to this site. Below the diagram enter the date you want (using negatives to mark BCE dates). Time isn't that important right now. Also set the latitude you want.

2. If you scroll down to below the part marked 'Ephemeris:", you'll see a table of numbers. Take the column marked Venus, and look over where it says 'Altitude' and 'Azimuth'. If Venus is setting, the Altitude will be near 0, and the Azimuth will be between 180 and 360 degrees. Fiddle with the time until Venus is setting.

3. Look at the number marked Azimuth -- this tells you Venus's position when setting. 180 is due south, 270 is due west, and 360 is due north. So 290 degrees would be a bit (20 degrees) north of west. Also note whether the Sun is up or down -- if it's up, then Venus is either too close to the Sun to see, or currently in the morning sky.

For a rising postion, just change the azimuth range to 0-180 degrees.

I could probably find something better if I think about it for a bit, but this shouldn't take more than 15 minutes.

[debitage]

Thank you loads. I think I'm going to be writing this paper on why the hell the Mesoamericans can't seem to put anything on a proper N-S axis, and I think Venus (which they were enormously enamoured of) plays in to it somewhere.