In our first Skywatch column last month Opens in a new tab, we discussed how an ability to read the night sky contributes to the three essential functions of oceanic wayfinding: orienting the vessel, determining the vessel’s position at sea, and making landfall. Today we will further explore the tool used by modern navigators on traditional sailing canoes such as the Hokule‘a.
The Hawaiian Star Compass is a circle whose edge represents the horizon with four quadrants separated by the cardinal directions: Hikina, east; Komohana, west; ‘Akau, north; and Hema, south.
Each quadrant is named for the winds that typically blow from that quarter. Between north and east is Ko‘olau; between east and south is Malanai; between south and west is Kona; and between west and north is Ho‘olua. Seven houses between each of the four cardinal directions divide the circle evenly: La, ‘Aina, Noio, Manu, Nalani, Naleo and Haka.
Star Compass by Honolulu Star-Advertiser on Scribd
If a star rises in the house called ‘Aina Ko‘olau, it climbs out of Hikina, arcs upward until it crosses the meridian (the imaginary line that runs between ‘Akau and Hema) and begins its descent toward Komohana, before re-entering the horizon in the same house it arose, ‘Aina Ho‘olua, only on the opposite side of the compass.
As objects viewed from the perspective of Earth, stars are identified with the hemisphere in which they rise and set and move in parallel tracks across the compass. Stars rising from the northern hemisphere set in the northern hemisphere. In the same manner, wind and swell patterns can be envisioned as moving from quadrant to opposite quadrant in the same hemisphere within the star compass. If a swell or wind moves into the compass from the house Manu Ko‘olau, it traverses the center of the compass and exits the opposite quadrant in the house Manu Kona.
The beauty of the Star Compass is its natural symmetry and reflective quality, allowing the navigator to use nature’s clues to determine direction.
Evening observing
As the closest planet to the sun, Mercury will always set just after the sun, so throughout the month you can catch a glimpse of Mercury at dusk. On Nov. 23, Mercury will be at a position known as greatest eastern elongation, marking its furthest position from the sun in our sky. This will be the best night to view Mercury, though it will still be faint and setting at 7 p.m.
In the west, just after sunset, you can see Saturn as it sets early in the evening (by mid-November it will set just before 8 p.m.) Saturn often appears to be a bit faint in our sky, but it will still be one of the first objects to become visible at nightfall. A small telescope will enable you to catch a glimpse of Saturn’s distinctive rings.
Through mid-to-late November, the spectacular Leonid meteor shower will scatter our sky with shooting stars. The Leonids are debris from the tail of the comet Tempel-Tuttle, which last swept through Earth’s orbit in 1998. The peak of the shower will occur on Nov. 17, when you should be able to see at least 10-15 meteors each hour.
Rising in the East will be the distinctive star cluster of Makali‘i, the Pleiades. This stellar open cluster stands out with its seven brightest stars visible to the naked eye.
Makali‘i is also used as a marker for the Makahiki season, the fall harvest celebration in the Hawaiian calendar when the chiefly class collected tribute from local communities and athletic competitions took place.
Morning observing
Look for Mars as it rises in the east at about 4 a.m. The red color of Mars makes it stand out against the background of stars; Mars gets its red color from the iron-oxide in its soil.
Just before sunrise, the bright shape Kaheiheionakeiki (Child’s Cat’s Cradle), which shares the same stars as Orion the Hunter, will be visible in the western sky. The first star to rise in Orion’s belt, also known as Nakao, is Melemele (Mintaka); it rises exactly east and is used as a marker for the Star Compass house of Hikina. Beneath Nakao, observers can look for the gray fuzziness of the famous Orion Nebula.
NOWEMAPA (NOVEMBER) SKIES by Honolulu Star-Advertiser on Scribd
Chad Kalepa Baybayan serves as navigator-in-residence and Emily Peavy is planetarium technician support facilitator at the ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center of Hawai‘i Opens in a new tab, at the UH Hilo campus, showcasing astronomy and Hawaiian culture as parallel journeys of human exploration.
