Document text
0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? e-edition | subscribe | newsletter | deals Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » NEWS NOW Two wheels to freedom: Phoenix camp helps kids with disabilities learn to ride ... Rocker's old house vaults Williams into the spotlight ... Mail Tribune garners 11 first-place wins at ONPA ... Two wheels to freedom: Phoenix camp helps kids with disabilities learn to ride ... Rocker's old house vaults Williams into the spotlight ... Mail Tribune garners 11 first-place wins at ONPA ... Looking Up: The stars from the North Pole Comment MailTribune.com Writer Posted Dec. 19, 2014 at 12:01 AM Posted Dec. 19, 2014 at 12:01 AM » Social News By Peter Becker More Content Now Ask almost any child in Western society about what the North Pole means to them and you will likely hear it is the abode of one Mr. Claus; the domicile of eight or nine reindeer, an assortment of elves and Saint Nick and his family; where Kris Kringel "hangs his hat." What would the jolly fellow see from his ice cap home when he looked up at this time of year? Right at the North Pole - where the barbershop pole is supposedly planted - the North Star, or Polaris, shines straight overhead. Around the very horizon is the Celestial Equator. Night lasts six months there, so as long as the sky is clear, you would see the constellations move around you in a circle, right around a point next to the North Star. From mid-Northern latitudes such as where Pennsylvania is found, the Big Dipper just misses the north horizon, as well as the W-shaped constellation Cassiopeia, on the opposite side from the North Star. We call these constellations "circumpolar" in that they never set. Others are the Little Dipper (Ursa Minor the Little Bear); Draco the Dragon; Cepheus the King and Camelopardalis, the Giraffe. From the North Pole, the ENTIRE VISIBLE SKY is circumpolar! Also visible would be the Northern Lights, or Aurora Borealis. This fantastic natural light show is caused by charged particles from outbursts on the sun, interacting with the atoms of Earth’s upper atmosphere, and flowing along the Earth’s magnetic field which surrounds the planet just like a magnet. Interestingly, a compass does not necessarily point exactly to the North Pole, but will be a few degrees off, depending on where you live. This is because the Earth, like an 8,000 mile wide magnet, has a north and a south magnetic end, or pole, but is off center from the Earth’s north-south axis of spin. The North Magnetic Pole is located in northern Canada. The North Pole of the axis of rotation is on the top of the globe. Northern lights appear regularly in a circle in the sky around the North Magnetic Pole (Southern Lights likewise appear in the south over Antarctica). On rare occasions Northern Lights move further down and we are able to see them from lower latitudes. From Santa’s North Pole, however, that "ring of fire" of Northern Lights would be off center and not straight overhead with the North Star in the middle. New moon falls on Dec. 21, the winter solstice. Keep looking up! MailTribune.com Writer Posted Dec. 19, 2014 at 12:01 AM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... Business Name address Location, ST | website.com Find Southern Oregon Attractions Bars Restaurants Beauty Salons Entertainment Doctors Medical Specialists Contractors Education Lawn Services Lawyers Shopping Travel Tanning Used Cars Wedding Services ▼ Add your business here + Events Calendar Connect with MailTribune.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services Home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Announcements Obituaries Story ideas Since you asked Alerts Email Alerts RSS Feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Propel Marketing Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Mobile Site Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Your privacy is important, read our privacy policy. © Copyright 2015 Local Media Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms of Service | Local Media Group Publications Original content available for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons license, except where noted. MailTribune.com | P.O. Box 1108, Medford, OR 97501