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O N S T E L L A T I O N S
When we look to the skies from earth, the Sun appears to move through the stars, as if it follows
a line; this line is called the ecliptic. We see how different stars appear at different times of day
by looking at the position of the Sun against the backdrop of stars as it moves along the ecliptic.
The constellations, or groups of stars in a pattern, through which the Sun moves during the year
as it travels along the ecliptic are called the 13 constellations of the zodiac. Your zodiac sign or SEPTEMBER
‘star sign’ is determined by the position of the sun on the date they were born. Meaning, a
person is considered a ‘Virgo’ if the constellation Virgo was behind the Sun at the time of birth.
These constellations among the stars have been the basis for which many societies tell stories;
many featuring gods and goddesses, animals or stories from their cultures. Most of the well-
known constellations come from ancient Greece, but other civilisations created their own
patterns in the stars and told stories based on their own legends and people. One of the most
famous of the Greek stories is that of Orion and Scorpius, a vicious tale based on arrogance and
boastfulness. Another known story based on the constellation Orion is that of Aboriginal people
of Aarnhm Land who told the story of three brothers, carrying the message that one should not
break the law.
MARCH
Orion and Scorpius Three brothers of the King-fish
Orion was a great hunter and became quite boastful about his skills, claiming there to be Three brothers of the King-fish, Nulkal clan went fishing, but all they could catch were king-fish.
no animal he could not kill. When Orion boasted to the Goddess Artemis, daughter of Zeus, Because they were in the king-fish clan, traditonal lore forbade them to eat these fish, and so
that he would kill every animal on earth, Gaia, the Goddess of the Earth, sent Scorpius to they had to throw them back into the water. Eventually, one of the brothers became so hungry
kill Orion. that he decided to break the law, and caught and ate a king-fish. The Sun-woman, Walu, saw
A great battle ensued which saw the demise of Orion. The contest was however such a this, and was so angry at him for breaking the law that she created a waterspout that lifted
lively one that it caught the attention of Zeus, the god of the sky and ruler of all Olympian them right up into the sky, where you can still see them.
gods, who then honoured Scorpius by raising it to the heavens. The Goddess Artemis, who
was Orion’s admirer, requested that Orion be honored in the same way. Zeus obliged,
placing them on opposite ends of the night sky; Scorpio can still be seen today, endlessly
chasing Orion across the night sky.
 N A V I G A T I O N
Indigenous Australians have been considered the first astrologers. The used the
stars to determine the change of seasons, breeding cycles of animals and as a
result, the availability of food sources. For thousands of years Indigenous people
have also used the stars as a navigational tool. The constellations we see in the
Southern Hemisphere can be used to determine direction. The Southern Cross,
which can be seen all year round can be used to find the South Celestial Pole
(SCP). There are two methods which can be used to identify the SCP.

Method One - Imagine a line connecting the two stars at the ‘top’ and the 'tail' of
the Southern Cross. Extend this line out four lengths, and from this point draw a
line to the horizon. This point indicates the SCP.

Method Two – This method use the Southern Cross and the pointer
stars from the neighbouring constellation, Centaurus. Like in Method One, draw a
line through the two stars at the ‘top’ and the 'tail' of the cross and extend it to
the dark patch of the sky the same way as in the first method, this forms line 1.
Line 2 come from joining a line between the two pointers, Line 3 is drawn from
the centre of Line 2, extending perpendicular towards line 1 until they meet. The
point at which the lines 1 and 3 intersect is the SCP. Draw the line from this point
to the horizon to find the SCP.