Analemma results

A year and change ago I started an experiment in a co-worker's cubicle. She asked me how the druids and ancient cultures like that knew when the solstice was. If you're interested in how the topic came up and evolved you can see an old post on the subject at http://dougintology.blogspot.com/2007/09/fall-equinox.html

Short version: I put a sticker on the window of her cubicle and set the alarm on my Palm Pilot. Every day at 3:00 I found where the shadow of the sticker fell and put a sticker at that point. The stickers eventually form a figure known as an analemma.

We lost a few months when I had to clear all the stickers. There's a gap of a couple of months in the design. That's because about 10 days ago the sun vanished behind a big tree outside. The stickers pick up again when the leaves fall off the tree. I didn't plot weekends. I couldn't plot cloudy days. And there were times when my alarm failed to go off. I left a co-worker in charge when I went on vacation. That's why you see one sticker that's about 2 minutes off the main loop.

But finally, after 16 months of plotting, I present to you my analemma.

Click the picture for a larger version.

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P.S. - Merry Equinox.