I just finished my ten thousandth watch if Moana with my son, and I do not understand how you can travel by holding your hand up to the starry sky. It would make sense if the stars were stationary relative to your position, but they’re not. A star you measure at 10pm is in a completely different position by 2am. I understand the Disney version is an oversimplification, but how does the real thing work?
In: Earth Science
Stars follow predictable patterns. A star moves across the sky over the course of a day, but if you know where it was at 2 AM last night, you know it’s going to be in pretty much the same spot at 2 AM this night.
Obviously stars move over the course of a season as well, but there are stars that are visible all year, called circumpolar stars, so those stars in particular are useful for navigation
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