Читать книгу How to Send Smoke Signals, Pluck a Chicken & Build an Igloo - Michael Powell - Страница 16

Tell the time without a clock

Whether it’s day or night, so long as you can see the sun or moon, you can estimate the time to within an hour by observing their position in the sky.

DAYTIME SUN METHOD

1. If you are in the northern hemisphere, face south; if you are in the southern hemisphere, face north. The sun always rises in the east and takes between 10 and 14 hours to travel in an arc across the sky before it sets in the west.

2. For this example, let’s assume you are in the northern hemisphere. Facing south, look at the position of the sun, then estimate how many hours of daylight there are today (if it’s high summer, you can expect about 14; if it’s spring or autumn, about 12, and in winter it will be about 10).

3. Mentally divide the 180-degree sweep of sky into equal parts, according to the number of hours in the day. If it’s twelve hours, then there will be six hours on the eastern half and six on the western half.

4. If you know how many hours ago the sun rose, you can then count from sunrise to find the approximate time.

5. The sun should be directly in front of/above you at noon, although this doesn’t allow for daylight saving hours. Also, in a country with several time zones, you must allow for your position within the country, either adding or subtracting half an hour.

NIGHTTIME MOON METHOD

1. If you are in the northern hemisphere, face south; if you are in the southern hemisphere, face north. The moon always rises in the east and takes between 10 and 14 hours to travel in an arc across the sky before it sets in the west.

2. For this example, let’s assume you are in the northern hemisphere. Facing south, look at the position of the moon, then estimate how many hours of darkness there are tonight (if it’s high summer, you can expect about 10; if it’s spring or autumn, about 12, and in winter it will be about 14).

3. Mentally divide the 180-degree sweep of sky into equal parts, according to the number of hours in the night. If it’s twelve hours, then there will be six hours on the eastern half and six on the western half.

4. If you know how many hours ago the moon rose, you can then count from moonrise to find the approximate time.

5. The moon should be directly in front of/above you at midnight, although this doesn’t allow for daylight saving hours. Also, in a country with several time zones, you must allow for your position within the country, either adding or subtracting half an hour.