Celebrate the first day of winter with friends at Medicine Wheel Park at sunrise (8:15 a.m.), and sunset (4:46 p.m.) on the Winter Solstice,                                        Monday, December 22.  The unobstructed views of the horizon from the Park at sunrise and sunset are the most spectacular of the Wheel’s                                    alignments.  Come at least 15 minutes early to get the full-scale effect of the solar calendar and stay late to view the display of candlelit ice                                        luminaries.

                                    This year, the candles will be lit in memory of Jim O’Connell (1924-2003), professor of mathematics at Valley City State University for forty                                     six years.  The candlelight from the ice luminary display is best seen as darkness sets in, after 5:15 p.m.  They will remain lit during this winter                                     vigil until at least 7:00 p.m.  A bonfire will supply warmth to thaw out any frozen Solstice revelers.  Visitors are welcome to take an ice                                                luminary home after the evening event. 

                                    Sticking with the established tradition, entertainment at the event will be provided by participants.  Please bring some kind of percussion                                             instrument: a bell to ring, a drum to beat, cymbals to clang.  Bring an extra noisemaker to share.  Extra-credit points will be awarded for the                                     most unusual instruments.  Speculation about ancient cultures around the world suggests ceremonies with the common theme of imploring the                                     Sun to turn around on the Solstice and begin a journey northward again.  The early ability to predict this event undoubtedly turned a fearful                                         occasion into one of greater joy and comfort for humanity.

                                    After dark, the Star Party begins. Dr. Preston Bush, Chair of the Mathematics Department, will be directing a telescope observing session.                                          Three bright planets along with the luminous winter stars will make for a spectacular light show in the sky.  Venus will be low and bright in the                                     southwestern horizon during twilight.  The red planet, Mars, will be due south at sunset in the constellation, Pisces.  Its apparent size will be                                         diminished, because of its increasing distance from Earth, since this summer’s close encounter.  Saturn, with its rings tipped at an almost                                             perfect angle to maximize Saturn’s stunning telescopic image, will rise in the east in the constellation Gemini at sunset. The Andromeda Galaxy                                     (our nearest galactic neighbor of comparable size and shape), the Crab Nebula (the famous 1054 A.D. supernova remnant), and M15 (a                                         globular cluster) and other deep sky objects will be targeted on this moonless night. 

                                    Because the new Moon is at perigee (closest to Earth) and the Earth is nearing perihelion (closest to the Sun), large tides are predicted for the                                     Solstice (the high elevation at the Park will ensure safety for the participants).  The Medicine Wheel can be reached by car by turning north                                         off the Winter Show Road onto 2nd Avenue SE at the sign, "Medicine Wheel Park."  No need for insect repellent or sunscreen (the Sun will                                     only reach a maximum nineteen and a half degrees off the horizon near noon on the Solstice), but you should bundle up!  It's cold up there in                                     the winter.  For more information about Medicine Wheel Park, you may access: http://medicinewheel.vcsu.edu, e-mail at joe.stickler@vcsu. edu,                                     or call at 701 845-7334.