"gregpresley" in
:

Incidentally, lots of
scientists are curious as to why the earth has a tilt. Some have
speculated that an enormous collision - say with another planet or a
very large moon - knocked it on its side, so to speak.

but republicans are sure that hilary did it.

I believe the Nazis said..

Whoops, there you, according to Goodwins Law, once someone invokes
Nazis, the thread is over.

http://www.worldhistory.com/wiki/G/Godwin's-Law.htm

As the subject seems to have been explained ad nausium, and the party
asking the original question seems to have a better grasp of orbital
mechanics, I propose we end the topic or have it moved to alt.astronomy
or another "appropriate" newsgroup.

Jim Carlock wrote:

Anyone else notice that the sun is still sinking south ?

I was thinking that the sun reached it's highest point in July
and would start moving the other way in the sky. In June,
the sun moved across the sky in a more northerly plane. In
May it was even further north. In September the plane it's
skewing along on is still moving south. I'm noticing this
because I'm watching the shadows of the overhang of the
roof and the shadows are indicating the sun is still moving
in a southerly direction.

What's wrong with my thinking? I was thinking it would reach
it's peak in July or maybe August (when it reached it's highest
point) and then the shadows would start moving in the other
direction. The side of the house that I'm watching the shadows
on is the south side. I'm in Tampa, FL, and for some reason
it's stuck in my head that the sun should start to travel a plane
that is more northerly each day.

Isn't the vernal equinox when it starts the southerly path?
(actually when we start the northerly path I guess.) I think that was in
June.
Jackie
"Jim Carlock" wrote in message
om...
Anyone else notice that the sun is still sinking south ?

I was thinking that the sun reached it's highest point in July
and would start moving the other way in the sky. In June,
the sun moved across the sky in a more northerly plane. In
May it was even further north. In September the plane it's
skewing along on is still moving south. I'm noticing this
because I'm watching the shadows of the overhang of the
roof and the shadows are indicating the sun is still moving
in a southerly direction.

What's wrong with my thinking? I was thinking it would reach
it's peak in July or maybe August (when it reached it's highest
point) and then the shadows would start moving in the other
direction. The side of the house that I'm watching the shadows
on is the south side. I'm in Tampa, FL, and for some reason
it's stuck in my head that the sun should start to travel a plane
that is more northerly each day.

--
Jim Carlock
Post replies to the newsgroup.

"J. Kolenovsky" wrote in message
...
Scott, thank you for the 2 excellent links explaining this. Especially
http://www.crh.noaa.gov/fsd/astro/season.htm as a visual one.



--
Good link.

A good globe of the earth will show the ecliptic which is the apparent path
of the sun as viewed from the earth. If you find your location on the globe
and the date, you can determine your N-S position relative to the ecliptic.

The vernal equinox occurs when the ascending node of the ecliptic crosses
the equator and passes into the northern hemisphere and the autumnal equinox
when it passes to the southern.

The earth tilts because it nutates (wobbles) about it spin axis because it
is an oblate, pear-shaped mass (not a perfect sphere) and also probably due
to gravitational effects from other heavenly bodies near enough to the earth
orbit to affect it

Olin

"J. Del Col" wrote in message
m...
"Jim Carlock" wrote in message
. com...


So you slept through astronomy 101?

Astronomy 101? This is junior high stuff. Sorry, but why are seasons a
mystery to adults? I mean really. I can see a primitive tribe in the Amazon
not understanding this, but educated adults?

"Bob Chipeska" wrote in message ...
"J. Del Col" wrote in message
m...
"Jim Carlock" wrote in message
. com...


So you slept through astronomy 101?

Astronomy 101? This is junior high stuff. Sorry, but why are seasons a
mystery to adults? I mean really. I can see a primitive tribe in the Amazon
not understanding this, but educated adults?


The natives of Amazonia would be far more in tune with the seasons
than the
"educated" adults. They might not understand why things happened, but
they could tell you exactly when they would.


J. Del Col

Astonomy 101 ?

LOL That must have been after the Geometry class. I slept
through Geometry... The best class I had that year was the
Drafting class... those two girls that sat next to me... wow!

Oh, wait... I had Biology that year. No astronomy. Never.
That year I remember the bus rides to school, I remember
being woke up by the Geometry instructor, several times
one day, and I remember the biology instructor had
disfunctional knees that could go into the back of her legs.

And those two girls in Drafting... wait... there was another
girl I had a crush on... Hmmm... You said Astronomy...

I guess Astronomy came during second grade. Went to the
Adler planetarium a couple times back then. Still have a pen on
my desk from the Adler Planetarium, that has a pressurized
ink cartridge in it.

--
Jim Carlock
Post replies to the newsgroup.

"J. Del Col" asked:
So you slept through astronomy 101?