The night sky has always attracted people’s eyes. Since ancient times, hundreds of scientists have invented new ways to observe the stars and planets. It seems that even though we know very little about space with current technologies, people of the past have not had the opportunity to learn anything about the space surrounding our planet. However, as studies show, since 2600 BC mankind has been exploring the secrets of the universe with incredible precision.
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You’ve probably heard the name “Stonehenge” at least once. This is a huge stone building located near the city of Salisbury. It is surrounded by two wells with a diameter of just over 100 meters, between which there is a moat. Stonehenge itself looks like a circle of detached, multi-ton stones arranged in an arc. In the northern part of the building there is an entrance, and in front of it, 30 meters away, is a six-meter stone weighing 35 tons, which is commonly called the Heel today. It must be said that initially the ancient structure seemed simpler, and huge boulders and arches, according to scientists, appeared here after 1000 years. Nowadays, the building looks like a central stone, surrounded by 30 sandstone blocks, arranged in arcs of different widths and heights, as well as 64 blue stones. The appearance of Stonehenge is breathtaking: standing in the midst of huge monoliths, it can seem as if they were left here by some ancient mighty giants from myths.
For a long time, scientists have wondered how and for what purpose people who lived 4,500 years ago were able to build this stone structure. Not so long ago, scientists finally found the answer to one of these mysteries. Stonehenge is an ancient observatory. In the course of research, it turned out that if you stand inside the circle, the Heel Stone with incredible accuracy will indicate the place of dawn on the day of the summer solstice. With your back to it, in the opposite arch, made of blocks of sand, you will see where the sun sets on the winter solstice. Each of the parts of the structure was not installed by chance – it indicates the positions of the Sun and the Moon on certain days of the calendar. It is not known how people of antiquity managed to calculate the trajectories of the movement of celestial bodies. However, thanks to Stonehenge, they could accurately determine the day by the position of the Sun or predict the phase of the Moon.
Another impressive observatory from the past, El Caracol, is located on the territory of modern Mexico. It was built about 1000 years ago by the Toltec and Mayan tribes. Only they observed in it not the Sun and the Moon, but Venus. This is due to the fact that this planet was revered by the tribes and was considered sacred. It is amazing that without modern technology and knowledge of space, astronomers of antiquity managed to accurately determine the trajectory of Venus and calculate its period – 584 days. At the same time, they were able to correlate its cycle with that of the Earth and establish that for eight revolutions of the Earth around the Sun, the sacred planet manages to complete only four. Research papers of astronomers of that time have also been preserved, describing many astronomical events of antiquity. The windows of the observation tower of the observatory overlook all the points of sunrise that are important for the calendar – the days of the solstices and equinoxes.
Ancient buildings to this day seem to man a real miracle. Huge structures attract millions of tourists, and excavations inside them last for years. It is impossible not to be amazed how, with the help of the simplest materials, people managed to conduct research that was confirmed only after hundreds and even thousands of years.
