STARWADERS Portable Solar System Model
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4.2
The View from the Top – or the Bottom?
We are in the Southern Hemisphere. The classical view of the Solar
System is looking down from above the North Pole, in which case
the planet’s orbits are anti-clockwise. Viewers looking towards the
ecliptic (the path along which the planets move) in the northern
hemisphere will stand with their backs facing the North Pole and be
able to imagine the planets moving against the background stars
along their orbits from west to east or right to left.
However, looking down on the Solar System from above the South
Pole, the planets orbit in a clockwise fashion. Thus, in the southern
hemisphere with our backs to the South Pole when viewing the
ecliptic, the planets will still move from west to east but now from left
to right.
This instruction manual is applicable to a viewer in the southern
hemisphere.
4.3
Orientation
The whole idea behind this Solar System model is to help viewers to
relate their horizontal feet-on-the-ground position on Earth to the
orbits of the planets ‘out in space’.
The frame is tilted so that its plane aligns roughly with the plane of
the real solar system. Consider the following situations. At the
equator, the plane of the the model orbits would then stand vertically
like a wall. Viewing from the poles (not likely!) the plane of the model
orbits would be positioned horizontally like a tabletop. The tilt for you
varies according to your latitude between those two extremes. The
tilt of the model is designed for approximately 30º. In the southern
hemisphere, when facing the model with your back to the south, the
left hand side of the model will be to your west and the right hand
side of the model will be to your east.
Beware of confusing the movement across the night sky from dusk till
dawn with the motion of the planets along their orbits. The former daily
movement is due to the rotation of the Earth on its own axis. The latter
orbital movement is due to the movement of the planets in their orbits
around the Sun.