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Stonehenge Aotearoa is a
fully working star compass specifically designed for its geographic location.
While it does share its name and scale with the famous megalithic structure
on the Salisbury Plains in England, it is not, and was never intended to be, a
direct replica. Our version is
positioned outside Carterton, New Zealand, and is designed for the purpose
of science education. It was constructed by members of the Phoenix
Astronomical Society over a period
of 18 months, and at
one time or another, more than 150 volunteers worked on the project.
The main Ring is 30 meters
in diameter and consists of 24 pillars topped with lintels. Its features
include six heel-stones for marking solstice and equinox dates, a five meter
tall obelisk and an analemma. At the central point lays a brass plaque, with
an inscription reading: "These standing stones, these stars, configure the
compass of Earth and the heavens." And that they do with amazing accuracy...
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