Wednesday, April 21, 2004

posted by: copernicus on 4/21/2004 05:07:00 AM
------------------------------------
SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE Vol. 3 of 5 (please click on the text for pictures)
------------------------------------
We've been sitting out on the porch with our neighbors. Me, Casey, Rodney & Mom, Brendan & Alicia from Indianapolis, Ray & Leslie (Ray's from Yugoslavia and Leslie is from New Zealand - they live in Auckland), and Hanz & Oola from Denmark. We've been drinking local wine (4 bottles so far) and talking about cultures. Now the conversation is turning political. Ray (who is Croatian) is telling us about what was really happening in Yugoslavia when Clinton got involved. The U.S. media said there were 1 million dead people and hyped us all up to get involved. He says only 180 were killed.
====================
It's now nightfall. 10:30 pm Wednesday, 4:30 am Wednesday in KC, and I was mistaken. An epiphany has shown that the angle of view of the Moon is not such to reveal a different part of the Moon, the Moon is upside down. The face - the "Man On the Moon" - is transposed, with the eyes on the bottom.

I took a chair out into the middle of a field to view the sky, and was marveling at the new sky when I stretched and leaned backwards with my head hanging off the back of the chair when it all became clear. With my head upside down I opened my eyes, looked at the Moon and realized my mistake. When my upside-down view looked at an upside-down Moon and it appeared normal, I visualized myself standing on the bottom of the Earth, gazing out into the universe with a flipped perception.

Orion and Leo are still visible, but they are the only recognizable constellations. All the other stars except Sirius are foreign. And in the Southern Hemisphere, Sirius is not below & to the left of Orion's right foot, it is on the other side of Orion - above & to the right of Orion's left shoulder. Leo is Directly overhead instead of being low on the horizon behind Orion. The name Orion is unknown in the Southern Hemisphere. They (the Aussies and New Zealanders) call it the Porridge Pot.
====================
Thursday morning - Feb. 17th, 2000.

Up early to the sounds of birds and rifle shots. Compressed air guns (no bullets)used to keep birds away from the grapes. A bus picked us up 10:30 and took us to some horse drawn carriages (beautiful mixed breed horses , half thoroughbred/half clydesdales) for a 6 hour tour of area vineyards. Beautiful country - some areas look like southern Georgia with 2000-3000 Ft. mountains. Now sitting in carriage waiting for everyone to arrive so we can leave. Rolling valley hills with "Great Dividing Range" as a rim around the valley.

I was wrong about Sirius. I originally thought that Sirius was on the other side of Orion because a bright blue/white star that looks like Sirius was above Orion's left shoulder. There was only a dim yellow star where Sirius should have been, but just because we're in another hemisphere does not allow for Sirius to move in relation to Orion. Sirius is so close to a symmetrical constellation, that I didn't realize it was upside-down.
====================
Feb. 18th, 2000. Dad & Todd's birthday. Dad would be 56, Todd is 26.

Drove back to Sydney this morning from Hunter Valley. Now waiting to board a Qantas flight to Cairns on the northeast coast of Australia for our scuba diving expedition in the Great Barrier Reef .