Every winter, Orion was the first constellation Hyeongseop looked for in the night sky. But no matter how hard he searched the summer sky, he couldn’t find it anywhere. In winter, three stars had lined up right there like a belt, bright and unmistakable. Now that same patch of sky held only unfamiliar stars.
“Byeoli, Orion was right there in winter. Where did it go? It’s not actually gone, is it?”
“Orion hasn’t disappeared. Right now it just happens to be in the same direction as the Sun during the day, so we can’t see it.”
“Why can’t we see it if it’s in the same direction as the Sun?”
“Sunlight is so bright it washes out every star’s light. During the day, it looks like all the stars have vanished, but really they’re just buried in sunlight. Orion is in that same part of the sky right now, so even at night, that direction has already swung around to face the Sun’s side.”
Hyeongseop climbed into Byeol-maru’s cockpit and studied a map of Earth’s orbit around the Sun. As Earth completed its yearly loop, the constellations spread across the night sky shifted position little by little with each season.
“So because Earth moves, the direction we’re facing at night keeps changing?”
“Exactly. The direction we look at night in winter and the direction we look at night in summer are completely opposite. That’s why Orion gets to be the star of the winter sky, and then in summer it hands that spotlight over to a different constellation, like Scorpius. It’s almost like the constellations take turns stepping onto the stage.”
“So the stars are all still there in the same sky, it’s just us moving around and seeing different parts of it?”
“That’s it exactly. The stars barely move at all. We’re the ones moving, riding this huge stage called Earth all year long, so the view outside the window changes with the seasons, just like watching scenery shift as you travel.”
“So will Orion come back once winter arrives again?”
“Of course. Once Earth completes its full loop, we’ll be facing the same direction again. Orion will be waiting in exactly the same spot for you, every single winter.”
“Did people a long time ago know about this too?”
“They sure did. Long before calendars existed, farmers and sailors could tell what season it was just by looking up at the night sky. When Orion rose, they knew winter was near. When Scorpius appeared, they knew summer had come. The stars worked like a clock and a calendar all at once.”
Hyeongseop felt himself relax. Orion hadn’t vanished just because he couldn’t see it for a while, it simply meant Earth was making its way around that great big loop. Somewhere in the summer sky, Orion was quietly waiting its turn beside the Sun, and suddenly the unfamiliar summer constellations felt a little more welcoming. Just like sailors long ago, Hyeongseop realized he could now glance at the night sky and guess how much of the year had passed. When winter came and Orion returned, he decided, he would be sure to say hello and tell it how long he’d been waiting.
“As Earth circles the Sun, the direction we face at night shifts with the seasons, which is why constellations change and later return.”
Your Turn Now
Share with someone today what you remember.
- Why can’t we see winter’s Orion in summer?
- What’s the real reason constellations change with the seasons?
- Will a vanished constellation come back?
(Check when ready: 1. It’s in the Sun’s direction, washed out by sunlight. 2. Earth’s orbit shifts our night-facing direction. 3. Yes, once Earth completes its loop, it returns the next year.)
답글 남기기