Sunday, November 20, 2011

Where on earth do you have to be to see the north celestial pole overhead?

I believe that this question means to ask about having the north celestial pole directly overhead. Any point directly above an observer's head is called the zenith. It is located 90 degrees up from that observer's horizon. It is important that this question specifically refers to the celestial pole, because that is different than Earth's magnetic pole that a compass would point toward. The celestial poles are based on Earth's celestial equator, which is an imaginary circle around Earth directly above the Earth's equator. It technically extends out into space forever. The important thing to note is that the celestial equator is based on Earth's geographic equator. This means that 90 degrees north of that is Earth's geographic North Pole. If a person stood directly on top of Earth's geographic North Pole, the north celestial pole would be directly overhead.
https://www.astronomynotes.com/nakedeye/s4.htm

No comments:

Post a Comment

What is the theme of the chapter Lead?

Primo Levi's complex probing of the Holocaust, including his survival of Auschwitz and pre- and post-war life, is organized around indiv...