December 17, 1997
Consider this: the iron in your blood was forged in a supernova explosion billions of years ago.
Stonehenge: Ancient Monument to the Sun
Birthday · December 17, 1997
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APOD published December 17, 1997. Credit: Clive Ruggles. A publication-date match, not a photo taken on your date. Independent of NASA.
Stonehenge consists of large carved stones assembled about 4000 years ago. Long before modern England was established, ancient inhabitants somehow moved 25 ton rocks nearly 20 miles to complete it. From similar constructs of the era, people could learn the time of year by watching how the Sun and Moon rose and set relative to accurately placed stones and pits. The placement of the boulders at Stonehenge, however, is not impressively accurate by today's standards, nor even by the standards of that time. Therefore, modern scholars interpret Stonehenge as a colossal monument to the Sun in celebration of the predictability of the seasons.
Image credit: Clive Ruggles