The Indians and woodsmen of old didn't need watches, compasses and barometers. They could get all the information they wanted from the animals and plants, the wind, the stars and the moon. Who today can interpret these natural signs? A passage in a recent magazine read: "Midnight. The tropical heaven arched above in a splendor of shimmering stars. The narrow, barely visible curve of the new moon stood near the zenith. . . ." Someone well versed in reading the heavens would have noticed immediately that this was impossible, for the new moon has to stand close to the rim and therefore could never be "near the zenith."
THE MOON
The waxing moon opens to the left, the waning moon to the right.
If you know when the moon, in its various phases, rises and sets, you can use it as a watch or compass. Your newspaper or a local observatory can give you this information.
The moon in its first quarter rises in the south at dusk and sets in the west at about midnight.
For the last quarter, it rises in the east at about midnight and sets in the south at dawn.
When the moon is full, hold your watch so that the hour hand points at the moon. South will be at the halfway point between the hour hand and the figure 12.
South
The waxing or waning moon will serve you as a compass if you first determine:
(1) whether the moon is waxing or waning,
(2) about how many twelfths of the face of the moon are visible,
(3) how late it is.
With a waning moon, subtract as many hours from the actual time as there are invisible twelfths of the moon. With a waxing moon, add as many hours as there are invisible twelfths.
Take the new time arrived at in this manner, and line up the figure on your watch for this hour with the center of the watch and the moon. Then, the halfway mark between 12 and this number on your watch points south.
Find north by reading clockwise from the hour hand before midnight, counterclockwise after midnight.
Example: At 8 o'clock in the evening, with a waxing moon (M). About half the face is visible (i.e., about 6/12). Therefore: eight plus six hours equals 2 o'clock. Align the figure 2, the middle of the watch, and the moon. The north-south line lies halfway between the 12 and the 2.
THE SUN
At noon, the sun is always in the south. In winter, it rises in the southeast and sets in the southwest. In the summer, it rises in the northeast and sets in the northwest. In the spring and fall, it rises in the east and sets in the west.
When the sun is visible and you have your watch with you, you can determine where the south lies. Point the hour hand toward the sun. The halfway point between the figure 12 and the hour hand will be pointing directly south.
If you do not have a watch along, but can hear the hour striking somewhere, draw a clock face on a piece of paper and proceed as if it were a watch.
THE STARS
The Indians used the star Alcor in the constellation Ursa Major (the Larger Bear) as a test for good eyesight. Whoever was able to see it had good eyes, and that holds true today.
Incidentally, Ursa Major and the Big Dipper, the seven principal stars within the constellation, make up one of the most striking groupings of stars. The constellation is easy to locate once you have memorized the form, and it can be very useful to you.
To find the North Star or Pole Star, let your eye travel along the imaginary line connecting Merak and Dubhe for five times the distance between these two stars. The North Star is at the end of this line. To be sure, it is not a brilliant star, but it stands directly in the north.
The Indians called the Big Dipper the "Seven People." The middle star of the handle, Mizar, was "the old squaw with a papoose on her back," and the papoose was Alcor.
The Big Dipper circles the North Star once every 24 hours. Therefore, as the night progresses, the constellation is always in a different position. When it has moved a quarter of a circle around the North Star, you know that six hours have gone by.
The position of the stars changes with the changing seasons. In the spring the constellations you see are different from those visible in the fall. However, you can see the North Star and the groups of constellations nearest it during the entire year. The surrounding stars form a constant circle around the North Star.
If you hold the chart below so that the name of the present season is at the bottom, you will have a picture of the northern sky as it appears about 10 P.M.
The little arrows indicate interesting formations you can see with the aid of a telescope:
D equals Double Star
C equals Cluster of Stars
N equals Nebula
The names in capital letters are constellations, and those in small letters are the brightest stars.
Orion, the "hunter," is probably the most conspicuous constellation in the winter skies. It is also called the Northern Cross. The three central stars represent Orion's belt. The center star in the belt rises exactly in the east and sets in the west. It is in the south when Orion is standing erect in the sky.
Observation times in the Southern sky: Oct. 1—10 p.m.; Oct. 15—9 p.m.; Nov. 1—8 p.m.; Nov. 15—7 p.m.
Depending on the season, you can locate a large number of constellations with the aid of the North Star if you follow the connecting lines shown in the illustration on the next page.
The brightest stars are indicated by number:
8. Deneb
9. Altair
10. Vega
11. Arcturus
12. Spica
13. Regulus
1. Aldebaran
2. Betelgeuse
3. Rigel
4. Sirius
5. Procyon
6. Castor and Pollux
7. Capella
Locating constellations with the aid of the North Star
To make a movable astronomical chart, copy or trace the two charts on pages 67-8. Cut out the two circles you have drawn, and paste them on separate pieces of thin cardboard. Also cut out the inner circle of the top disc to represent the line of the horizon.
How to use the chart: Lay the disc with the horizon cutout on top of the other disc in such a way that the month in which you are using the chart is on top, and the time of observation is directly opposite it on the bottom. Then fasten the two discs together in this position with paper clips. When you are looking south, turn the entire chart so that the word "south" is at the bottom; when you are facing north, the word "north" should be at the bottom, etc. Through the cutout section you will see the sky as it appears over you.
Do not forget to reset the chart for the correct time if you are watching the stars for a long period. Store the chart in a stiff envelope when you are not using it.
continue on to chapter 7: At Water's Edge
