Space 'facts' that you thought were true: but are not!

Spiral galaxies visible from the Earth. (Creative commons, File)

Distant planets and enigmatic galaxies have captivated humanity's imagination for ages. In our quest to understand the cosmos, numerous myths and misconceptions have emerged. In a tete-a-tete with astronomy enthusiast and ISRO-recognized space tutor, Tanmaye Vyas describes the cosmos with a critical eye as he helps debunk many of the commonly assumed 'facts'.

Here are some of the biggest mistakes walking around camouflaging as well-known facts:

"Sun does not rise from the east."

Vyas dispels the myth by saying, “We have always heard about how the sun rises in the east and sets in the west.” He adds, “However, this might surprise many that this is a baseless saying.”

Vyas explains, “We don't realize that is a generalisation. In fact, it (the sun) only rises due east and sets due west only twice a year: the fall and spring equinoxes.” Each day the rising and setting points change slightly due to the tilting of our home planet.

Image source: Creative commons

"Indians celebrate Uttarayan on the wrong day!"

Uttarayan is one of the few festivals celebrated on a fixed date of Jan 14 of every year (except Jan 15 in some communities when it's a leap year). Uttarayan marks the day when the Sun starts moving towards the north. The sun's rising position decides the occurrence of the festival. So, in a technical sense, Makar Sankranti and Uttarayan occur on different days and Uttarayan starts from Dec 21! From that day onwards nights are longer and days are shorter.

Image source: Creative commons

“Noon and midnight are not 12.”

The local noon differs from place to place. When the sun is at a culmination (the highest point in the sky), that is referred to as noon or noon. So, the time of noon is not fixed due to variations in the sun's culmination.

Image source: Creative commons

"Pole star is not the brightest star in the sky."

The pole star popularly known as Dhruv tara is not the steadiest or brightest star in the sky. Instead, it is the 46th brightest on the list! Vyas said, "The brightest star in the sky is Sirius, also known as the 'Dog Star'."

Image source: Creative commons

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