Monday, September 24, 2012

Vernal (Spring) Equinox at Ahu Akivi

The spring equinox took place here on the island at 09.49am local time on Saturday 22nd September, giving people the chance to confirm the alignments of certain moai and platforms that have long been taught.  Like most people, I had been repeating for many years the long held belief that the moai at Ahu Akivi were lined up directly with the position of the sunrise and sunset on either of the equinoxes, a fact that archaeologist/constellation expert Edmundo Edwards has long doubted.  Yesterday's sunset would appear to confirm that the alignment is close - but not exact, with exact alignment apparently taking place in a week's time.


However, much more interestingly, Edwards also stated that the moai are actually aligned to the position of the rising and setting of the Orion constellation at the equinoxes, a phenomenon that we went to test on the night of the 21st.  Aside from being one of the island's most evocative platforms anyway, on an especially clear night we were privileged to witness a truly remarkable spectacle:

   
This photo was taken at about 2.30am, and Orion's belt is just starting to appear directly behind the middle moai, with Orion's 'sword' visible over the moai's left shoulder:

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