Where is the Horizon?

For the dawn of the early century, crossing the oceans and the seas is the most used means of transportation for trades, exploration and with the schema to conquer one’s land. How to dance with the waves? How to bend the wind? And where to go? The early sailors knew. 

Before the invention of compass and other navigation equipments, ancient seafarers got to entrust their voyage to the stars. But not all knew the anatomy of astronomy, so physics is an option.

To know their exact location, sea travelers would then use sextant; a device that could actually measure the angle between two objects, the horizon and the sun. 

Works with the presence of the Sun and mirrors, where light coming from the Sun will then reflect to a mirror and to another mirror leveled to eye’s view as well as to the horizon. With moveable arm to adjust for measurement, and there you know now where to go. It been called sextant for having 60° capacity. 

Images Credit: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/shackleton/navigate/escapeworks.html

 
Remora GPS Tracker. Copyright (c) 2013. All rights reserved.

Aftershocks

Distance over distance, I travel through time

Way back to my childhood and all were fine

Every decision I think of may not affect me

But to realize I am just free

I will then need to grow up

Where playing games would stop

Hanging in the air, taking up responsibility

Point of no return, it’s my destiny

Why I’m holding this gun?

Knowing it won’t give me any fun

Why am I running?

Why should I take something without giving away anything?

Small diamonds to large and luxurious car

Run too near and run too far

GPS device alarms, drives along the dim road

Escaping this capture scene through fog

But why this happens?

I am a child just eating an ice cream

This got to be the life I have now

The rebellion I’ve done, so much for a narrow mind

Remora GPS Tracker. Copyright (c) 2013. All rights reserved. 

Ancient GPS Series: Egypt, Artist of the Sand

The astonishing pyramids, with its extraordinary size, perfect symmetry and amazingly last for about thousand years. A mystery, on how the ancient empire could build such work of architecture and so, why?

The Egypt, known for its rich civilization and culture; ruled by a highly respected Pharaoh, and a faithful believer of the stars. Who doesn’t aware of their astounding writings, the hieroglyphs. Carved at stones and painted on walls, likely a series of comical scenes and figures of their character and known to be gods. 

But what lies behind their solar religion? The answers are the sacred pyramids of Giza. Astronomy plays an important role to their rigid tradition, the stars and constellations are then in perfect alignment with the pyramids and temples that the Egyptian empire was actually driven by their faith.

The known Orion Mystery, where the Giza pyramids were aligned perfectly at the time of 10,000 BC with the constellation’s belt, the Mintaka, the Alnilam and Zeta. And so those deceased kings are facing towards the Orion.

Sirius, another precious star for the empire, the star that gives warning. The bright thing in the night skies that would fall and cannot be seen for 70 days, days of the raging flood of Nile. And so the priests could predict rising waters of the river, with the disappearance of Sirius.

With this terrestrial set up, does Egypt intent to do a replica of heaven? Reproducing the locations and arrangement of the stars, do they see themselves as gods? Or they are just wanderers of the skies?

But the scene behind their religion still shreds on mystery, how could they know the exact location of the Orion Belt and built the pyramids knowing that its location changes? Are they aware of the location tracker technology? Do they know GPS?

But when reality speaks, past is for the past; their rich culture and tradition will rest forever inside the pyramids, reside behind the hieroglyphs and will be buried under the witnessing sand.

Remora GPS Tracker. Copyright (c) 2013. All rights reserved. 

Ancient GPS Series: Measuring Mayan’s Accuracy

Long count calendar systems, planetary conjunctions, solid course of astronomy, concrete application of mathematics and esoteric cycle concept of life and death. These are what this civilization has. This is how powerful they are. The Mayan.  

One of the prominent and controversial predictions of the Mayan Long Count Calendar Cycle is the “end of the world” dated: December 21, 2012. Though nothing happen, there must be significant on that date, as per the civilizations’ credibility.

There are known about 17 Mayan calendars, where each corresponds to a particular event or cycle. The Long Count then predicted the rare galactic alignment only happens every 25,800 years, involving the earth at winter solstice, the sun and the galactic equator. 

The end of the particular calendar is either represents the actual celestial event or its effects. Believed by the Mayan as the end of the current age, and shifts to an age where humans will attain the highest level of knowledge.

Yet on how accurate they could predict the passage of the Sun, Venus, stars and other celestial bodies on particular latitude, conjunction of planets with particular constellation, and world transitions are astonishing. On that matter, are they really just patient astronomers and sky watchers or are they using an advanced technology opposing to the Stone Age?

How could Mayan track the positioning of the Earth within the universe? Just like a modern GPS technology tracking a car somewhere here in globe. Are observations and mathematics are good enough to acquaint with positioning and accurate celestial events?

These may be then imprinted to the ruins of the great civilization and the modern minds couldn’t just fully decode their works. But why is their tradition and knowledge reached a dead end and no one in the present could continue their great account to once again predict the future?

Remora GPS Tracker. Copyright (c) 2013. All rights reserved.