Spring is coming. And if you can’t feel it in the air, or check your calendar, then a local group has a way of showing the spring in a very concrete way.
On Sunday, the Okanagan Centre of the Royal Astronomical Society Canada is inviting the public on another trek to the top of Munson Mountain to observe the vernal equinox at Pen Henge. That’s the circle of sighting stones they have set up on top of the mountain, marking the positions of the sun as it makes its yearly journey across the horizon.
“They’re not big, this is a very mini version of a Stonehenge, but it is the same idea that cultures have been doing to mark the rising or setting positions of the sun, to mark the arrival of the next season, said Ryan Ransom, vice-president of OC-RASC. This is the second official celebration — the first was the dedication of the array on the winter solstice, marking the completion of a project two years in the making.
It all started with a trip up Munson Mountain to observe the fall equinox, according to Ransom, when members of the group put a small stick in the ground as a reference point for what would become the heel stone, the place you observe from.
“It took over a couple of years to find enough days that we could site these locations and get stakes in,” said Ransom, adding that the stakes were replaced by stones in late 2010. “This is something that cultures have been doing for thousands of years, to keep track of what probably is the most important thing to staying in one place as a civilization, to tell you unambiguously when the next session is coming.”
While we have many timekeeping devices and calendars now to keep track of the seasons, Ransom said Pen Henge is not only fun, but an important way of illustrating the changes the sun and sky go through during the course of a year.
“Other than just the beauty of the sky, especially the nighttime beauty, there is every reason to pay attention to the sky if you can get something as important as timekeeping from it. Everything starts with the ability to track the sun and keep track of time,” he said. “It’s because we have things like calendars and wristwatches that we forget where these ideas, the real importance of timekeeping, really comes from.”
“It’s an opportunity for people to experience something they either didn’t ever expect to see or realize people were doing for thousands of years before there were accurate timekeeping devices or accurate calendars.”
The standing stone array is made up of four stones: a heel stone to the east and three other stones which mark the sunset direction at the winter solstice, the spring and fall equinox and the summer solstice in June. At those times the sun’s shadow extends from the respective marker stones directly to the heel stone.
“For most of the year the structure simply illustrates the enormous range along the western horizon where the sun sets. Most people subconsciously know of this, but they are quite fascinated to see the idea laid out so graphically,” said project leader Chris Purton.
While clouds covered the sunset during the solstice celebration, organizers are hoping for clearer skies on equinox, allowing the public to watch the shadow cast by the setting sun on the equinox stone slowly creep toward the heel stone. The equinox gathering will take place from 6 to 7 p.m. At 6:35 p.m., Purton will ring a bell to mark the moment of the halfway point of the sun’s annual migration.
Activities will continue on Monday, when the Penticton Arts Society will feature interpretive displays at the Shatford Centre at 760 Main St. Included will be displays explaining the vernal equinox and how it fits into the calendar, together with information on how the equinox is calculated and indirect ways it can be observed astronomically.
