#twilight compass

i was gonna say this the other day, i cant remember if i did??? anyways Eulalia is gonna find out abt rolly pollies and never be over them ever

like dude-!!! what if you lived somewhere where instead of like, horses, there was giant bugs, who served as the main mode of transportation, and who were an intrinsic part of your society, as beloved as our dogs and cats are to us

and then someone told you in their dimension they were no bigger than 2.5cm and you could keep them in a terrarium if you wanted to

This disc - known as the Uunartoq disc - was discovered in Greenland in 1948 in a monastery dating from the 11th century. Although some researchers originally argued that it was merely a decorative object, other researchers suspected that the disc was an important navigational tool used by the Vikings on their 1600 miles (2500 kilometres) journey from Norway to Greenland.

Although only half of the wooden disc remains, it is estimated to have been about 7 cm (2.8 inches) in diameter, with a now lost central pin that would have cast a shadow from the sun indicating a compass direction. The researchers at Eötvös Loránd University believe that although the disc could have functioned as a single unit, it was more likely used in conjunction with other instruments - including a pair of calcite crystals and a flat wooden plate - to facilitate navigation when the sun was low in the sky or even below the horizon.

Hypothesized use of the artefact dial with a shadow-stick. (a) At low positive solar elevation angles, when the shadow is not visible but the Sun’s position can be estimated, the appropriate socket of the stick is fitted to the tip of the central gnomon (dark grey). After sunset the shadow-stick could represent the shadow of an imaginary gnomon ‘illuminated’ from below the horizon (light grey). The side point of the stick representing the shadow edge at the given solar elevation should be fitted to the asymptote, the matching socket should be fitted to the centre of the imaginary gnomon, and the dial should be rotated until the stick points towards the solar meridian. (b) When the Sun is below the horizon, it is easier to navigate with a compass turned upside down (by 180°). Now, the real gnomon plays the role of the imaginary one. The shadow-stick can be used to represent the imaginary shadow below the compass dial. The northern incised line represents the imaginary gnomonic line. The kit functions as an efficient twilight compass as long as the azimuth and elevation angle of the set Sun can be reliably estimated.

This was probably done by using a low-lying, domed object in the centre of the compass to create a wider, shorter shadow than a more typical sundial spike would do. A wide hole in the centre of the disc - previously interpreted as a place to grab the compass - may have served as a stopping point for this so-called central gnomon, the researchers suggest. Once the Vikings had determined the position of the hidden sun, they could have used a specially designed wooden plate, a so-called shadow stick, to simulate the gnomon’s shadow based on the angle at which the hidden sun would strike him. The position of the outer edge of this imaginary shadow could then have been used to determine their cardinal point.

Old art dump!!! Ft. 2019 ish concept doodles of twilight compass (once again, mostly scribbly character designs)<3

Aveline!!!!!!!

Kay!!!!!