Welcome to the new website

Welcome to my new website! It’s finally here (to those that have been waiting). I’ve been using Blogger since the beginning of 2003, writing new content from time to time, and I thought it was about time that I integrated my weblog into my website. In fact, the old website was the first one that I’ve ever made, which I created when I started my Masters degree in 1999. That makes it quite old.

So, here’s the new one, redesigned with a lot of old content gone, a bit of new content added, and some of it remaining the same. But now that I have the new design and framework in place, I can start adding new content easily. What’s new? Well, the banner at the top, for one. In the top, right-hand corner you’ll see two graphics showing the geocentric longitudes of the Sun and the Moon, respectively. The positions are generated using the Swiss Ephemeris every five minutes, but you’ll have to refresh the page to see any updates. Also, the quote at the top of the page is now no longer given out at random, but a unique quote is given every day. View the source for this page to see how I do this.

Anyway, I hope you like the new design, and that you’ll keep coming back to see what’s up with me. Let me know what you think. Cheers!

Vernal Equinox

Welcome to boreal Spring! With the Vernal Equinox, the Sun entered the sign Aries earlier today at 0100 UTC, which is another way of saying that the Sun’s geocentric longitude along the ecliptic is starting back at zero degrees again. Or, from the point of view of the Sun, we on the Earth are beginning another cycle around the Sun. But don’t worry, we’ll be back here in another (tropical) year.

Also, the Sun’s geographic position (GP), or the point on the Earth’s surface where the Sun is directly overhead, crossed the equator from south to north at the mighty speed of 1.8 km/h! Now if the Earth did not rotate about its axis, the west-to-east speed of the GP would be about 4.2 km/h at the equator. But when you take into account the rotation, the speed is much faster at about 1671 km/h (and in the opposite direction).

But at least now Spring can begin in the Northern Hemisphere. (Oh, and welcome to Fall if you are in the Southern Hemisphere.)