The Precession Of The Equinoxes

The Precession Of The Equinoxes In astronomy, axial precession is a gravity-induced, slow and continuous change in the orientation of an astronomical body's rotational axis. In particular, it refers to the gradual shift in the orientation of Earth's axis of rotation, which, like a wobbling top, traces out a pair of cones joined at their apices in a cycle of approximately 26,000 years (called a Great or Platonic Year in astrology). The term "precession" typically refers only to this largest secular motion; other changes in the alignment of Earth's axis - nutation and polar motion - are much smaller in magnitude. Earth's precession was historically called precession of the equinoxes because the equinoxes moved westward along the ecliptic relative to the fixed stars, opposite to the motion of the Sun along the ecliptic. Historically, Hipparchus is credited with discovering the precession of the equinoxes. The exact dates of his life are not known, but astronomical observations attributed to him by Ptolemy date from 147 BC to 127 BC. With improvements in the ability to calculate the gravitational force between planets during the first half of the 19th century, it was recognised that the ecliptic itself moved slightly, which was named planetary precession as early as 1863, while the dominant component was named lunisolar precession. Their combination was named general precession instead of precession of the equinoxes. Lunisolar Precession Lunisolar precession is caused by the gravitational forces of the Moon and Sun on Earth's equatorial bulge, causing Earth's axis to move with respect to inertial space. Lunisolar precession is about 500 times larger than planetary precession. Planetary Precession Planetary precession (actually an advance) is due to the small angle between the gravitational force of the other planets on Earth and its orbital plane (the ecliptic), causing the plane of the ecliptic to shift slightly relative to inertial space. In addition to the Moon and Sun, the other planets also cause a small movement of Earth's axis in inertial space, making the contrast in the terms lunisolar versus planetary misleading. In 2006 the International Astronomical Union recommended that the dominant component be renamed the precession of the equator and the minor component be renamed precession of the ecliptic, but their combination is still named general precession. Causes Of The Precession Of The Equinoxes The precession of the equinoxes is caused by the gravitational forces of the Sun and the Moon, and to a lesser extent other bodies, on the Earth. It was first explained by Sir Isaac Newton. Axial precession is similar to the precession of a spinning top. In both cases, the applied force is due to gravity. For a spinning top, this force tends to be almost parallel to the rotation axis. For the Earth, however, the applied forces of the Sun and the Moon are nearly perpendicular to the axis of rotation. It is considered that the Earth is not a perfect sphere but an oblate spheroid, with an equatorial diameter about 43 kilometers larger than its polar diameter. Because of the Earth's axial tilt, during most of the year the half of this bulge that is closest to the Sun is off-centre, either to the north or to the south, and the far half is off-centre on the opposite side. The gravitational pull on the closer half is stronger, since gravity decreases with distance, so this creates a small torque on the Earth, as the Sun pulls harder on one side of the Earth than the other. The axis of this torque is roughly perpendicular to the axis of the Earth's rotation so the axis of rotation precesses. If the Earth were a perfect sphere, there would be no precession. This average torque is perpendicular to the direction in which the rotation axis is tilted away from the ecliptic pole, so that it does not change the axial tilt itself. The magnitude of the torque from the sun (or the moon) varies with the gravitational object's alignment with the Earth's spin axis and approaches zero when it is orthogonal. Although the above explanation involved the Sun, the same explanation holds true for any object moving around the Earth, along or close to the ecliptic, notably, the Moon. The combined action of the Sun and the Moon is called the lunisolar precession. In addition to the steady progressive motion (resulting in a full circle in about 25,700 years) the Sun and Moon also cause small periodic variations, due to their changing positions. These oscillations, in both precessional speed and axial tilt, are known as the nutation. The most important term has a period of 18.6 years and an amplitude of less than 20 seconds of arc. In addition to lunisolar precession, the actions of the other planets of the solar system cause the whole ecliptic to rotate slowly around an axis which has an ecliptic longitude of about 174¡ measured on the instantaneous ecliptic. This so-called planetary precession shift amounts to a rotation of the ecliptic plane of 0.47 seconds of arc per year (more than a hundred times smaller than lunisolar precession). The sum of the two precessions is known as the general precession. Effects Of The Precession Of The Earth Axis The precession of the Earth's axis has a number of observable effects. First, the positions of the south and north celestial poles appear to move in circles against the space-fixed backdrop of stars, completing one circuit in 25,772 Julian years (2000 rate). Thus, while today the star Polaris lies approximately at the north celestial pole, this will change over time, and other stars will become the "north star". The south celestial pole currently lacks a bright star to mark its position, but over time precession will also cause bright stars to become south stars. As the celestial poles shift, there is a corresponding gradual shift in the apparent orientation of the whole star field, as viewed from a particular position on Earth. Secondly, the position of the Earth in its orbit around the Sun at the solstices, equinoxes, or other time defined relative to the seasons, slowly changes. For example, suppose that the Earth's orbital position is marked at the summer solstice, when the Earth's axial tilt is pointing directly towards the Sun. One full orbit later, when the Sun has returned to the same apparent position relative to the background stars, the Earth's axial tilt is not now directly towards the Sun: because of the effects of precession, it is a little way "beyond" this. In other words, the solstice occurred a little earlier in the orbit. Thus, the tropical year, measuring the cycle of seasons (for example, the time from solstice to solstice, or equinox to equinox), is about 20 minutes shorter than the sidereal year, which is measured by the Sun's apparent position relative to the stars. Note that 20 minutes per year is approximately equivalent to one year per 25,772 years, so after one full cycle of 25,772 years the positions of the seasons relative to the orbit are "back where they started". In actuality, other effects also slowly change the shape and orientation of the Earth's orbit, and these, in combination with precession, create various cycles of differing periods; see also Milankovitch cycles. The magnitude of the Earth's tilt, as opposed to merely its orientation, also changes slowly over time, but this effect is not attributed directly to precession. For identical reasons, the apparent position of the Sun relative to the backdrop of the stars at some seasonally fixed time, say the vernal equinox, slowly regresses a full 360¡ through all twelve traditional constellations of the zodiac, at the rate of about 50.3 seconds of arc per year (approximately 360 degrees divided by 25,772), or 1 degree every 71.6 years.

Extinction Level Events

It is noticeable that around the half way point (12,886 yrs) and full cycle of 25,772 yrs there have been cataclysmic events occurring on Planet Earth, This has been said to be a pole shift whereby the crust of the earth has loosen from the molten interior and swivelled violently and uncontrollably in a very short period of time causing extinction level events and consequently a crashing of the few surviving humans level of consciousness. Which then slowly rebuilds over then following half way cycle. The previous cycle being the matriarchal period of Atlantian and Lumerian civilisation, which disappeared after the last cataclysm. The survivors with the exception of a very few having lost all previously attained knowledge and started again at the lowest level of consciousness, developing a patriarchal civilisation till now where humans have attained its highest level in a duality consciousness but are about to destroy itself all over again.

The Age Of Aquarius

We are at the end of the current cycle of the precession, moving from the Age of Pisces (which was dominated by the birth and evolution of Christianity) to the Age of Aquarius."Age of Aquarius" is an astrological term denoting the forthcoming astrological age, depending on the method of calculation. Astrologers maintain that an astrological age is a product of the earth's slow precessional rotation and lasts for 2,160 years, on average (26,000-year period of precession / 12 zodiac signs = 2,160 years). According to astrological mysticism, there will be unusual harmony and understanding in the world. Those who follow that belief system see it as a turning point in human consciousness in which balance is restored by consciously moving beyond the physical body. The Aquarius symbol metaphorically means 'closure in water'. Water represents the collective unconsciousness or consciousness hologram which creates the grid programs of our physical reality. Many connect the Age of Aquarius with the return of the goddess, priestess, or feminine energies - those that vibrate above/faster than physical frequency. This is the return to higher consciousness, the awakening of higher mind and thought in the alchemy of time. End Of All Cycles And Ascension It is widely considered that this particular cycle of 2,160 years, 25,772 years and multiples of 12 thereof .i.e. (309,264 years, 3,711,168 years, 44,534,016 years......), is the end of all cycles and that Mother Earth is now in an Ascension process.