Happy Solstice!

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Stev0 @ Dec 21 2006, 04:08 PM) [snapback]365278[/snapback]</div>

Hooray to that! And hello Winter!

 

and to you, too!

 

I have really got to get a picture of a cat!

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(TonyPSchaefer @ Dec 21 2006, 03:40 PM) [snapback]365318[/snapback]</div>

It looks like you folks in Chicago are in for some bad winter weather...how does your Prius travel bad roads in that neck of the woods?

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(TonyPSchaefer @ Dec 21 2006, 02:40 PM) [snapback]365318[/snapback]</div>

Why am I wanting a beer?

 

I just ran across this:



Just the Right Seasoning © 2000 by Robert C. Moler


One of the misconceptions that most folks share about the world around them is the reason we have seasons. This month we start the season of summer with the summer solstice on June 21st. I shall tackle this challenge by using new and different diagrams and charts. Maybe this will give a different slant on the subject.

[attachmentid=5961] The common misconception is that the earth is closer to the sun in the summer than during the winter. The diagram left was created by a computer fed with the mathematical description of the earth's orbit by plotting the earth every 5 days. (Note at the 4 o'clock position the overlap caused by the quarter day difference in the actual length of the year.) The points at the quarters are VE-vernal equinox, SS-summer solstice, AE-autumnal equinox, and WS-winter solstice. Noted too are perihelion, the earth's closest point to the sun, and aphelion, the earth's farthest point from the sun. The diagram, though accurate for distances, shows the earth and sun as being way too large. The sun would be a tiny dot, and the earth an invisible point.

The earth's orbit seems quite circular. It isn't exactly. Out of the earth's mean distance of 92.9 million miles from the sun, the earth gets as close as 91.3 million miles to the sun around January 2nd and as far as 94.5 million miles around July 4th. So the earth is actually closer to the sun in winter than in summer. But I've left out a small detail, when we in the northern hemisphere have summer, those in the southern hemisphere have winter.

Since the earth has opposite seasons at the same time, the earth's distance from the sun isn't the reason for the seasons. The immediate cause for the seasons is the tilt of the earth's axis. It is 23.5 degrees from the perpendicular to the earth's orbit. The axis tends to point in the same direction, but as the earth orbits the sun, the north pole and then the south pole are alternately tilted toward the sun bringing summer to that hemisphere. At the midpoints between these extremes are the equinoxes where the sun appears above the equator, and the entire earth receives 12 hours of sunlight and 12 hours of night. [attachmentid=5962]


When a hemisphere is tilted towards the sun the sun gets higher in the sky at noon plus it also stays out longer. When the sun is high in the sky it's rays don't spread out as much as when the sun is low. It's heat is more concentrated. To the right is a diagram showing the intensity and duration of sunlight on the winter solstice, December 21st, an equinox, March 20th or September 23rd, and the summer solstice, June 21st for the latitude of Traverse City. In the vertical scale of the graph an intensity of 1 equals the energy delivered to the earth, when directly overhead. The area under the curve represents the total energy applied to the surface of the earth at our latitude. On an equinox Traverse City receives 77% of the total energy of the summer solstice, while on the winter solstice the total energy drops to only 30% of the summer solstice value.

The actual effect of the earth being closer in the northern hemisphere winter increases the sun's heat by 3%, that's 103% of 30%. It also diminishes the summer intensity by about the same value. The true effect of the earth's elliptical; orbit is to change the number of days in each seasons. The winter (in the northern hemisphere) perihelion makes winter the shortest season at 88.99 days, summer's aphelion makes it the longest season at 93.65 days. By the way, spring has 92.76 days and autumn has 89.84 days. The reason for the differences is that at perihelion, earth's closest point to the sun, the earth moves the fastest, and zips through that season quicker, than when the sun is farther from the sun.

So despite everything its still the tilt that causes the seasons.

 

The reason for the season is here! Celebrations of light and life!

Have a super Solstice, everyone.

 

Good thing most of us aren't in Alaska!

 

I think our friends in Australia and South America thought we would not notice that they are taking our daylight. That is it, they are taking way too much! Were going to start taking it back tomorrow!

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(nyconrad @ Dec 21 2006, 06:04 PM) [snapback]365337[/snapback]</div>

That is awesome.

 

It's the most wonderful time with a beer
With your friends jello-shotting
And everyone telling you
Have some more beer
It's the most wonderful time with a beer

It's the hap-happiest reason of all
With those holiday greetings
And great happy meetings
When friends start to fall
It's the hap-happiest blah blah all

There'll be parties for drinking
da da da for drinking
And passing out in the snow
There'll be lot of beer here
And snails on the ground
Of Christmases Blah, Blah da

It's the most wonderful time with a beer
There'll be much missing toes and
And hearts will be “thudâ€
Hum hum hum hum hum
Is da ost won-der’l ime with a BEER!
“Splatâ€

 

The Homer J. Simpson Beer Song

DOUGH... the stuff... that buys me beer...
RAY..... the guy that sells me beer...
ME...... the guy...who drinks the beer,
FAR..... the distance to my beer.
SO...... I think I'll have a beer.
LA...... La, la la la la beer
TEA..... no thanks, I'm drinking beer...
That will bring us back to...

(Looks into an empty glass)

D'OH!

 

Hurrah! There are more hours of sunlight each day for the next 6 months!

 

You mean the most daylight L.A. can hope for is 14.43 hours? That's not good enough. I say we try harder and shoot for 15 hours. Come on! We can do it!

This year 15 hours. Next year, 15 hours 15 min! We need to show those Seattle people!

Come on! Who's got daylight!

 

OK YOU PEOPLE - - - - STOP JUMPING THE GUN!!!!!
Winter Solstice isn't here yet!!!! It won't happen for another couple of hours!!!! It will happen at 4:22 pm PST.

Me personally, I really don't care about the Winter Solstice . . . I celebrate December 7 . . . (a sad day because of the attack on Pearl Harbor) . . . but a happy day because that is the day the sun sets the earliest.
http://www.usno.navy.mil/pao/sky/sky_week.shtml

I am not a morning person, and am rarely up to see a sunrise, so I really don't give a crap what time the sun rises - it's all wasted daylight hours to me.
December 7th - that is my Sunlight Solstice :wub: . . . after that date, I get more sunlight.

If I were King of the Earth, I would decree that sunset always happened at 9:00pm. Our days would be geared to the sun, not to our clocks . . . and our clocks would therefor be geared to a 9:00pm sunset. SCREW MORNING PEOPLE AND THEIR DAYLIGHT SAVINGS TIME!!!! If they want to get up when it is cold and dark outside, I'LL GIVE THEM COLD AND DARK!!!!! Bwaaaaahhhh haaaaaaaa :blink: :wacko:

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Sufferin' Prius Envy @ Dec 21 2006, 02:27 PM) [snapback]365401[/snapback]</div>

That's how it used to be. Except that 12:00 noon was when the sun was highest, rather than using sunset. Every town's clock was set by the sun. The railroads put an end to it, because it made havoc with their timetables. In this age of global capitalism, I don't think your idea will get much support.