Tea at Trianon: The Winter Solstice and the Great Conjunction

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Monday, December 21, 2020

The Winter Solstice and the Great Conjunction

From The Old Farmer's Almanac:

The first day of winter in the Northern Hemisphere is marked by the winter solstice, which occurs on Monday, December 21, 2020, at 5:02 A.M. EST.

For the northern half of Earth (the Northern Hemisphere), the winter solstice occurs annually on December 21 or 22. (For the Southern Hemisphere, the winter solstice occurs on June 20 or 21.) The winter solstice is the day with the fewest hours of sunlight in the whole year, making it the “shortest day” of the year. Thankfully, after we reach the winter solstice, the days begin to once again grow longer and longer until we reach the summer solstice—the first day of summer and the longest day of the year.

Think of it this way: Although the winter solstice means the start of winter, it also means the return of more sunlight. It only gets brighter from here! (Read more.)

From Dark Sky:

These planets align every 20 years because Jupiter orbits the Sun every 12 years, while Saturn takes 30. So, every couple of decades, Jupiter laps Saturn. However, this year’s conjunction is especially rare. These planets have not been this close and visible in the night sky away from the glare of the Sun since the year 1226, and this won’t happen again until March of 2080. The “great conjunction” of Jupiter and Saturn offers a unique opportunity to see the motion of two planets relative to each other in the night sky. And the best part? This event can be viewed from all around the world! However, the farther north you are the less time you will have to catch a glimpse of the conjunction before it slips below the horizon and out of view. (Read more.)

More HERE.