H. A. DmNews

The Newsletter of the Historical Astronomy Division of the American Astronomical Society

Number 46 November 1998 HAD Elections Lunar Standstill Alignments?

The time has come to elect a new HAD Vice- Brad Schaefer, Yale University Chair and two members of the HAD Committee. The Nominating Committee has Is there any ethnographic or historical evidence submitted the following slate of candidates. for lunar standstill alignments? I recently Pursuant to the HAD By-Laws: "During the asked the HASTRO LISTSRV this question, next thirty days, additional candidates may be and it led to a vigorous discussion. I received nominated by petition of at least 10% of the comments (through HASTRO or privately) Membership . . ." Such petitions may be sent from Rolf Sinclair, Sara Gardner, John to the Secretary. Carlson, Mary Blomberg, Tom Settle, Steve McCluskey, Michael Zeilik, Ed Krupp, Simon For Vice-Chair: Barbara Welther Cassidy, Nick Carnpion, Peter Nockolds, Brad Schaefer George Gale, and Dan Purrington. Rolf For Committee: Sara Schechner Genuth suggested that I try summarizing the responses: Steve McCluskey Tom Williams Five separate historical or ethnographic Joanne Eisberg evidences were advanced: Joe Term (1) The biblical book of Joshua [10:12-131 You will receive a final ballot (with candidate says "and the sun stood still, and the moon biographies) in thirty days. The new HAD stayed." But this happened in the middle of a officers will serve a two-year term, beginning battle that explicitly lasts only during one in 1999. At that time, current Vice-Chair (long) day. Also, the event is reported just Virginia Trimble will assume the Chair. after various fantastic heavenly prodigies. The moon reference is a poetic allusion to time (The Nominating Committee is chaired by going slowly, and appears unrelated to lunar Woody Sullivan. Members are Kate Bracher standstills. and Andy Fraknoi.) (2) The palace of Zakros in eastern Crete has These five connections are the best with which some proposed southern lunar standstill anyone could come up. Compare them with orientations, while at the same site was found the vast ethnographic and historic sources for a libation bowl with a Linear A inscription alignments to sunrises on significant dates, to interpreted as referring to a Moon goddess. (I cardinal directions, to solsticial positions, and have been unable to get the referenced to Mecca. A number of the most widely conference proceeding, but I had always heard experienced workers in our field weighed in to that Linear A was undeciphered, so I cannot say that essentially no reliable historical or verify the strength of the reading.) Lunar ethnographic evidence exists that anypre- 1900 orientations can be easily found at many sites culture displayed any interest in lunar and Moon goddesses are common, so on the standstills. And a number of these people said evidence given, this relation is weak. that they had been searching long and hard. Given this stunning lack of written or oral (3) It has been suggested that certain minor evidence, we can only conclude that most (but irregularities in the dates of the Zuni Shalako not necessarily all) cultures have zero or near- festival could be explained if the Full Moon zero interest in lunar standstills. was determined by observations relating moonrise to solsticial sunrise. But this carries One person raised a separate-but-related no implication that the Zuni used, cared about, question, asking "What is wrong with 'the or recognized the standstill phenomenon. existence of the alignment itself as evidence?" He then points to many cases where (4) Hawluns' original historical evidence for "historical" data is unreliable by itself and Stonehenge standstill alignmentswas a passage where archaeological data is adequate by itself. fiom Diodorus Siculus concerning It was speculated that the motive for raising (presumably) Britain, in which the Moon and this good point is a response to the occasional the nineteen-year Metonic period are prejudice where classical historians ignore all mentioned among a jumble oftopics [Hawluns, nontextual data. From the following re- Stonehenge Decoded, pg. 1301. This passage sponses, it seems that everyone agrees that our could be forced to fit a lunar standstill situation "Rules of Evidence" should neither forbid nor with some liberal interpretation and assuming require any one type of information. And one textual error (the Metonic cycle is not the everyone agrees that the more types of standstill cycle). But the record must be confirming information available, the more heavily "deciphered," and other interpretations confident the result. Hence, the case for lunar are reasonable, so this connection was alignments would be substantially stronger if characterized as "inconclusive." we knew that many (or even a few) cultures were interested in standstills, fiom written or (5) Hawkins also relates a story [Mindsteps of oral data. the Cosmos, pg. 89-90] about a (modem?) farmer near a stone circle who connects the Several responses to the side-question ("Is a circles to something the Moon does every 19 lunar standstill alignment good enough by years. If this comment is not from a 20th itself?") touched close to the heart of the century farmer, then it might hark back to the archaeoastronomy paradigm as practiced. Diodorus tradition with all its weaknesses yet Various problems were noted that led people to with two more millennia of separation. suspect that an alignment alone was not enough in general. The first problem is that damage or rebuilding while many have alignments to them; it is might shift the orientation. The example given plausible to think that a solsticial orientation was that the popular summer solstice event at observed for a prehistoric monument like Casa Rinconada is a result of the kiva's recon- Stonehenge is actually an alignment." The struction. most famous claim of lunar standstill alignments (British megaliths) fails test A, The second problem is that artifacts of while tests B and C are not possible. That is different eras might-or-might-not be related in my reason for posing the historylethnography the original builder's design. The example question in the first place, so as to evaluate given was that a cairn near a stone circle sites by test D. cannot readily be distinguished as fkom the Bronze Age or fkom a medieval farmer. From the replies, I don't think that our community is in disagreement. So let me be so The thrd problem is that "the artifacts rarely brash as to try to briefly summarize what I speak for themselves and usually have to be learned: Five ethnographclhistoric examples evaluated," which is to place the ideas in the of interest in standstills were advanced, but all context of the culture. No example was given, taken together are too weak to be considered but I readily recall the myriad interpretations useful. No reliable written or oral report is for Stonehenge when the stones are allowed to known of any culture anywhere before 1900 speak for themselves. having any interest in lunar standstills. This is in sharp contrast to the bountiful reports of The fourth and greatest problem is that no case solar alignments of various types, so that we of lunar standstill alignments has been shown can realize that few (if any) cultures have any to be statistically significant. The example interest in the standstill phenomenon. This given was the megalithic monuments in Britain conclusion places a heavy burden on anyone for which Ruggles' great surveys and analyses who claims that a lunar orientation is actually show Thom's claim to be statistically invalid. an alignment, as they must provide evidence of So in response to the request for a better interition when all evidence shows that no one explanation of the claimed alignments, we has any interest at all. The lack of merely need advance the null hypothesis of ethnographiclhistorical evidence fiom cultures "random" orientation. worldwide does not in any way refute the idea of lunar alignments, but it does rob the idea of Perhaps the most insightful remark was to an opportunity to argue by cultural analogy, make the distinction between "orientations" and it does rob the idea of plausibility. and "alignments," with the latter implying intention on the part of the builders. [Thanks go to Dr. Schaefer for providing a text Orientations are easy to find and prove, but version of this review at the Editor's request. - alignments require us to somehow get inside T. H.] the thoughts of the builder. The mere existence of an orientation does not prove intention by itself. Intent can be shown by some combination of (A) statistical significance over the null case, perhaps with a multi-site analysis, (B) historical documents on the culture in question, (C) ethnographic Bookmark the HAD Web Page at information on the culture, or more weakly (D) ethnographic analogy with other cultures. For http://www .aas.org/-had/had.html test D, the argument might go something like: "Almost all societies recognize the solstices, AAS Centennial Meeting At the AAS Centennial meeting, David will give an invited, one-hour talk before the whole Society, in an unparalleled session on the Don Osterbrock history of the AAS, based, of course, in large Chair, AAS Centennial Committee part on the book he has edited. In addition, there will be another unparalleled session, The HAD will hold its 1999 meeting at the before the whole Society, on the future of the AAS Centennial meeting, which will take AAS (and of astronomy), with three (or place in Chcago, May 30 through June 3. In possibly four) invited talks, all by former addition to the sessions for historical papers, presidents of the Society. A third session, which the HAD will organize, the AAS will organized by the Centennial Committee, will have several historical sessions itself. These be a half-day session, in parallel with other AAS sessions, and other activities as well, (mainly scientific) sessions, on "My Most were recommended to the Council by the Memorable AAS Meeting," at which members Centennial Committee, and these of the AAS will describe past meetings that recommendations were all approved by the they attended. (There will be a poster session Council. the same day on the same subject, for all the papers submitted on this topic that are not The main activity to date has been the chosen for oral presentation at the session.) preparation of the AAS Centennial book, Giving an oral or poster paper at these sessions edited by David DeVorkin (current HAD will not be counted as giving a "regular" paper; Chair, who will turn over its gavel to Virginia any AAS member can give one of these "show Trimble at the time of the Austin AAS meeting and tell" papers and also a regular scientific in January 1999). Entitled The American paper. Astronomical Society's First Century, it is an excellent book that is conlplete and in the The Centennial Committee, which developed hands of the publisher, the AIP Press, at the plans for the Centennial meeting, is made present. Members of the AAS and of the HAD up of 27 members, of whom 12 are also will have a chance to buy a copy of it at the members of the HAD. It was set up by the exceptionally reasonable AAS Council in 1995 on the recommendation price of $25 when they pay their dues this fall. of Woody Sullivan, who was then chair of the Everyone who registers for the AAS HAD, and its chair and vice-chair. Original Centennial meeting at Chicago will receive a members were appointed by Frank Shu, then copy of the book it their registration package. president of the AAS. The AAS Centennial exhbit will first be displayed at this Centennial meeting. It is now being prepared under the direction of Curator Sara Schechner Genuth, with the assistance of Steve Dick and David DeVorkin. It will include pictures, docunlents, and artifacts fiom the Society's history, and after the Centennial meeting it will be displayed at the AAS offices in Washington, the AIP Address changed? Be sure to forward your headquarters in College Park, Maryland, and at new address to the HAD News Editor. universities, observatories, and research centers throughout the country that wish to exhibit it. AIP Center for History of From the HAD Chair Physics Grant-in-Aid for On Sunday, May 30th, 1999, the HAD will History of Modern Physics and meet at the Adler Planetarium for thematic Allied Fields (Astronomy, sessions on "Presenting Astronomy to the Geophysics, etc.) Public, 1700 - 2000," which will include inspection of the Adler's new galleries. Anyone interested in presenting a paper on The Center for History of Physics of the contemporary issues relating to the public American Institute of Physics has a program of presentation of astronomical history should grants-in-aid for research in the history of contact David DeVorkin, who is coordinating modem physics and allied sciences (such as the session with Bruce Stephenson ofthe Adler astronomy, geophysics, and optics) and their and Ron Brashear of the Dibner Library. We social interactions. Grants can be up to $2500 also are interested in papers about how each. They can be used only to reimburse astronomy was presented to the public in the direct expenses connected with the work. past, over the same time period. Preference will be given to those who need hnds for travel and subsistence to use the And don't forget to sign up for the Saturday resources of the Center's Neils Bohr Library (May 29th, 1999) tour of the Yerkes (near Washington, DC), or to microfilm papers Observatory--a special HAD event also in or to tape-record oral history interviews with a conjunction with next summer's Centennial copy deposited in the Library. Applicants AAS Meeting. should name the persons they would interview or papers they would microfilm, or the David DeVorkin collections at the Library they need to see; you can consult the on-line catalog, and please feel fi-ee to make inquiries about the Library's From the HAD Secretary holdings. This quarter's HAD News is brief. However, Applicants should either be worlung towards a watch for your officers' election ballot to arrive graduate degree in the hstory of science (in in about a month. which case they should include a letter of reference fiom their thesis advisor), or show a "Close Out Special." A few issues of HAD record of publication in the field. To apply, News #4*0remain. Members may request a send a vitae, a letter of no more than two pages copy fi-om the Editor. Highlights include the describing your research project, and a brief Toronto HAD Meeting, the Conference in budget showing the expenses for which Honor of Domt Hoffleit's 90th Birthday, and support is requested to: Woody Sullivan's (From the "Lucubratory") thoughts about time. 'Available while supplies Spencer Weart, Center for History of Physics last! American Institute of Physics One Physics Ellipse Contributors: The deadline for submission to College Park, MD 20740 HAD News #47 will be January 13,1999. phone: 301-209-3 174 Fax: 301-209-0882 Thomas Hockey e-mail: sweart@,ain.org (address on your envelope) Phone: (3 19) 273-2065 Deadlines for receipt of applications are June Fax: (3 19) 273-7124 30 and December 3 1 of each year. I: hockey@,uni.edu Correspondence Mayan ruins. I have continued that course here, and the field trip has visited the Yucatan and the Four-Comers region of the US. I also A note fkom the AAS: "The 1999 renewal dabble in the general history of astronomy as a notices were generated on Thursday & Friday way to bring personal interest into astronomy of this week [September 10-111. What this classes and public lectures. means is that all members of the AAS and a Division (excluding DDA) will be receiving Mark A. Nook the first bill witlun the next several weeks; Dept. of Physics, Astronomy & Engineering foreign mail will take a little longer to receive. Sciences Please inform your members of this mailing in St. Cloud State University your next newsletter. Should someone not receive a bill by the beginning of November, they should contact me [Sharon Savoy] Members in the News directly. Woody Sullivan (University of Washmgton) And fkom our heroic bibliographer, Ruth was featured in the October 9,1998 Science (p. Freitag: "When, at the invitation of David 2 11) for his initiation of the first PhD. program DeVorkin in the spring of 1988, I first began to in Exobiology. Woody is a past Chair of the assemble references to recent publications HAD. relating to the history of astronomy, the lists were published only in the HAD newsletter. It Brad Schaefer (Yale University) writes a was felt that recipients would be looking at Sky feature article for next month's Sky and and Telescope, Astronomy, the Journalfor the Telescope, entitled "Meteors that changed the History of Astronomy, John Carlson's world." Archeoastronomy, and Istoriko- astronocheskre issledovaniia themselves, and that therefore it Upcoming Meetings would not be necessary to cite material published in those journals. Since the lists are The Fourth Biennial History of Astronomy now being more widely circulated, both Workshop will be held July 1-4, 1999 at the electronically and in the Australian Journal of University of Notre Dame. Co-Program Chairs Astronomical History and Heritage, it was are Mike Crowe and Steve Dick. Matt Dowd recently decided, in consultation with Steve Dick and with the approval of the [HAD News] will serve as local arrangements chair. Persons Editor, that it was time to abandon this having suggestions or proposals should write practice. Relevant articles and papers as soon as possible to either appearing in these sources fkom 1998 onward will therefore be cited, beginning with [issue Steven J. Dick . #45]." U. S Naval Observatory 3450 Massachusetts Ave. NW Waslungton, D.C. 20392-5420 New Members dickaariel.usno .naw.mil tel. 202-762- 1438 I am a professor of astronomy at St. Cloud State University and serve as the director of the or to SCSU Observatory and Planetarium. I have a particular interest in archaeoastronomy. I introduced an archaeoastronomy course at another institution back in 1986 with a mandatory field trip to the Yucatan to tour the Michael J. Crowe Dowd with regard to how much space will be Program of Liberal Studies needed. University of Notre Dame Notre Dame, IN 46556 USA The sixty-five historians of astronomy who Crowe. [email protected] attended the Third Biennial History of tel. 2 19-631-62 12. Astronomy Workshop, held at Notre Dame in June, 1997, praised the lively and informed Registration information can be obtained from sessions, the comfortable and informal atmosphere, and the reasonable room rates. Astronomy Further information will be forthcoming. Center for Continuing Education University of Notre Dame Call for Papers: ASP July 1999 Notre Dame, IN 46556 USA cce.cce. 1@,nd.edu The Astronomical Society of the Pacific (ASP) will hold its "1 11 th Annual Meeting" jointly Local Arrangements information can be with the Royal Astronomical Society of secured from Canada (RASC) and the American Association of Variable Star Observers (AAVSO) in Matthew F. Dowd Toronto, Canada on 1-7 July 1999. Three Graduate Program in History and Philosophy history sessions will be presented by the ASP of Science history committee: University of Notre Dame Notre Dame, IN 46556 USA I. Amateur Contributions to Astronomy- Mattliew.F.Dowd.1 1 @,nd.edu Invited lectures for the general public, Sunday tel. 2 19-287-7226 morning, 4 July.

The workshop is sponsored by the History and II. General History of Astronomy-invited Philosophy of Science Graduate Program of lectures for the general .public, Sunday the University of Notre Dame, the History of afternoon, 4 July. Astronomy Special Interest Group of the History of Science Society, and the Historical III. General History of Astronomy- Astronomy Division of the American contributed papers for those particularly Astronomical Society. interested in the history of astronomy, Monday 5 July. Regarding transportation, flights come to the South Bend Auport from a number of major Both oral and poster papers are solicited for the cities. Persons arriving via Chicago can take third session. Poster papers will be displayed the United Limo Bus, whlch runs from the Sunday as well as Monday. United Terminal at O'Hare Airport directly to the Notre Dame campus. Round-trip fare is The nordiistory portions of the meeting, other $52. For a schedule aid reservatioiis, call than the weekend, will consist niostly of United Limo at (800)833-5555. For those lectures of interest to amateur astronomers. driving, ample parking is available. A campus The weekend sessions are for the interested map and parlung information will be sent in public and will include many talks on current the CCE information packet. developments in astronomy as well as on history. There will be a tour of the historic The conference will include a book exhibit and David Dunlap Observatory Monday evening. display tables. Participants are welcome to If you are planning to attend the Notre Dame bring materials to display. Please contact Matt conference, please note that it will end Sunday, 4 July. At least three airlines offer one-stop Nebulium flights from South Bend to Toronto Saturday Origin of the Constellations evening. For further information: Temple of the Planets Astronomy in the Book of Enoch The overall ASP-RASC-AAVSO meeting: Lunar Standstill Alignments Finding the Celestial Pole http ://www .aspsky.org/subpages/inti~g.html Istanbul Observatory Library John Strong The ASP History Committee and sessions at Was Geometry or Astrology First? this and previous meetings: A. P. Herbert D. H. Howse Hip parchus Janssen's Photographic Revolver Hadley's Quadrant The Notre Dame conference: The Analema The Intihuatana Ahcan Constellations Daoist Astronomy 1054 Supernova Shakespeare as Calendar-maker If you are interested in contributing a paper, Archeoastrononiy URLs please contact the undersigned: Ordering of Keplerls Laws Heveliusl Observatory Joseph S. Tenn, Chair, ASP History Hamlet and the Supernova of 1572 Conunittee, Dept. of Physics & Astronomy Lunar Alignments Sonoma State University Right Ascension and Declination Rohnert Park, CA 94928-3609 [email protected] HASTRO-L is provided by Stephen (707) 664-2594 McCluskey at the University of West Virginia. fa(707) 664-2505 Web Page of the Autumn

The Space Calendar, by Ron Baalke [New listings for this column are solicited. - T. H.] Not primarily a history resource, this calendar includes anniversary dates (in five-year Recent Discussion "Threads" increments) significant in the history of on the History of Astronomy astronomy. These are mixed with the Calendar's more usual fare: dates of upcoming Discussion Group space-probe launches, conjunctions, perihelion (HASTRO-L) passages, etc. The advantage of TSC1sWWW version is links to other sites. For instance, October 8, 1998 was the 125th anniversary of Scientific Bets Ejnar Hertzsprung's birth. If you click on How to Refer to the Earth "Hertzsprung," you are taken to Joe Tennlssite Was Genghls Khan Turned Back by biographing ASP Bruce Medal winners. the Planets? Remember Pioneer Venus? On December 4, Astronomy and Religion 1998, it will have been twenty years since that Paris Pismis's Catalogue probe orbited our sister planet. Click on its influence; and all that we are evil in, by a name, and you are brought to a NASA site divine thrusting on: an admirable evasion of describing the mission. All told, there are whoremaster man, to lay his goatish 1,100 links on the calendar--so far. disposition to the charge of a star! My father compounded with my mother under the dragon's tail; and my nativity was under Ursa Major; so that it follows, I am rough and The Space Calendar is entertaining and is an lecherous. Tut, I should have been that I am, unusual teaching tool. (It appears as a link on had the maidenliest star in the firmament the department Web site fiequented by my twinkled on my bastardizing. students.) And don't forget that January 13, 1999 is Olin Wilson's 90th birthday. Edmund is the (disgruntled) bastard son of Gloucester and obviously doesn't put much From the Lucubratory stock in astrology--did he speak for Shakespeare? A question for HADites: is the reference to Draco and Ursa Major, whch of Woody Sullivan, University of Washington course are not in the ecliptic/zodiac, just a joke, or were these circumpolar constellations PBS-TV recently aired a marvellous also tied into 16th-century astrology? production of King Lear, and I was delighted to see that it opened with a person viewing a I also like this passage because it uses thee of partial eclipse of the Sun through a smoked the many terms that come to us fiom astrology, glass--the Bard does not call for this, but the but whose origins are not generally director inserted it in order to refer to a later appreciated. A disaster is a dis-aster, i e., a exchange in Act I. This is one of my favorite sign not favorable to one's star. Spherical astronomical/astrological passages in effects are those originating in the Aristotelian Shakespeare. Unfortunately it was severely spheres, and we still use the phrase spheres of edited in the TV production, but here is a more influence. And influence itself means a complete version [boldface is mine] : "flowing in," specifically of an ethereal fluid that flowed fiom the stars and affected human Gloucester: These late eclipses in the sun and lives--hence the term influenza fiom the moon portend no good to us: though the Middle Ages, when the dis-ease's cause was wisdom of nature can reason it thus and thus, ascribed to the heavens. Finally, one word not yet nature finds itself scourged by the sequent in this passage is consider, whch is to be "cum effects: love cools, friendship falls off, brothers sidus, with the stars", i. e., contemplating. divide: in cities mutinies; in countries discord; in palaces treason; and the bond cracked 'twixt [Woody Sullivan invites comment at e-mail: son and father . . . 'Tis strange [email protected] - T. H.] Edmund: This is the excellent foppery of the world, that, when we are sick in fortune,--often the surfeit of our own behaviour,--we make guilty of our own disasters the sun, the moon, and the stars: as if we were villains by necessity; fools by heavenly compulsion; knaves, theves, and treachers, by spherical predominance; drunkards, liars, and adulterers, by an enforced obedience of planetary

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