02 January 2011 by Tristan Gooley

Happy New Year!
At times like this, I sometimes wonder what the Earth and Sun would say to each other if they could talk. They would watch us celebrating this annual moment at such an arbitrary time…
Sun: I could understand a party at either solstice…
Earth: Yes, or one at either equinox. Would make good sense…
Sun. Quite. But to pick a day about a week after one solstice…
Earth: Very strange.
Sun. Yes. They are a very strange lot.
In this picture of a beech tree in Wiltshire, we can see both moss and lichens thriving in the moist air close to the ground. Water evaporates constantly from the ground and moisture-loving organisms, including mosses, lichens and algae, will be found close to the ground regardless of aspect.
Direction can be found by looking for clues above this area or sometimes by getting to know the lichens…
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Tags: algae, beech trees, equinox, finding direction, lichen, moisture, moss, navigation book, solstice, water, wiltshire |
06 July 2010 by Tristan Gooley
Churches are well worth a minute of navigational inquiry. The church itself is likely to show a preference for an east-west alignment, with the altar at the eastern end. But the fact that they are often old buildings that have been left exposed to the elements for long periods, without incessant redecorating or even cleaning, yields other interesting clues in the form of lichens, algae and mosses.
Gravestones tend also to be aligned east-west also, so that the dead are ready when ‘the trumpet shall sound and the dead shall be raised’. Any exposed stone that faces east or west will receive a mixture of sunlight and shade. Consequently they typically display a mixture of lichen types, as in the gravestone in this photo, in the graveyard of St Giles church in the quiet West Sussex village of Graffham.
On this gravestone there are a preponderance of gold and…
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Tags: algae, churches, churchyard lichens, finding direction, graffham, moss, moss and lichen growth, st giles, west sussex |