The Analemma
Aug 13th, 2007 by lisa
What is it?
It looks like a string of pearls, with a twist. It also resembles a lemniscate, the symbol for infinity.
It has a name. It’s called The Analemma.
You would expect that if you looked at the Sun at the same time each day, from the same place, it would appear at the same location in the sky. You would be correct, if the Earth were not tilted, and if its orbit around the Sun were perfectly circular. Because neither of those things are correct, what you get in this case is this pattern in the sky.
The Sun will appear at its highest point in the sky, and highest point in the analemma, during summer. In the winter, the Sun is at its lowest point. The remainder of the year makes up the rest of the analemma pattern. If you’re still confused, this might help you to get a clearer picture.
Photographing the analemma is a daunting challenge, simply because it takes an entire year to get the complete image. According to Sky and Telescope, more men have walked on the moon than have successfully photographed the analemma. The very first successful image of it, was taken by Dennis di Cicco.
The world is full of beautiful wonders for us to enjoy. Even if they take a full year to appreciate.
Last night found me atop a low mountain on a dusty road with a worry wart attempting to take pictures of the Perseid Meteor Shower. Forty-five minutes later, the coyotes began to howl and my traveling companion got scared. No usable images were taken and now my car is covered with road dust. I guess I’m telling you this because I wouldn’t have the patience to do what these amazing photographers have done! Thank you for writing about the Analemma! It’s fascinating.
I’ve been meaning to thank you for posting this—it’s fascinating. I’d never heard of it before.