In article ,
(Oriel36) wrote:

Reed Riddle wrote in message
...

The Earth rotates in 23h 56m 4s with respect to the stars (and galaxies
and quasars). That is all that matters.

1 axial rotation through 360 degrees = 23 hours 56 min 04 sec

2 axial rotations through 360 degrees = 47 hours 52 min 08 sec

I assure anyone who checks using a stopwatch that it is a mathematical
and astronomical certainty that a star will NOT return to the same
position in the sky after 47 hours 52 min 08 sec (which corresponds to
2 sidereal days).

If you want to take into account all the extra factors inherent in the
problem, then yep, things won't be exactly in the same place. At the
level of the usual consumer grade telescope, they will be, and that's
what we're talking about here.

The conclusion is simple,Flamsteed's 1677 premise and method of proof
for determining the constant axial rotation of the Earth is incorrect.

Do you realize all the effects of a non-constant rotation of the Earth?
Those would be far more prevalent than what you're worried about.....

[Mod. note: this is getting a little close to `because I say so'
speculation. Any more assertions that all modern observational
astronomy is wrong should perhaps be justified with argument -- mjh]

Well, I assert it's right.

Reed

--
Dr. Reed L. Riddle
Associate Director of Whole Earth Telescope Operations
Iowa State University Department of Physics & Astronomy
Email: drriddle "at" qwest.net
Homepage: http://wet.physics.iastate.edu/~riddle/

"This life has been a test. If this had been an actual life, you would have
received instructions on where to go and what to do."
Angela Chase, "My so-called life"

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