Our sun and closest star is believed to be approximately 4600 million years old and is composed (by mass) of hydrogen (74.5%), helium (23.5%) and various other heavier elements (2%) such as oxygen and carbon. Due to this gaseous state, the sun does not rotate about its axis at one uniform rate but has the poles rotating at a slower rate than the equatorial region. It has a central temperature of 14 million degrees whereas the surface temperature is a mere 5500 °C. With a diameter of 1.4 million km, it is about 109 times as wide as Earth whereas with a mass of 2 x 10³⁰ kg, it is 335,000 times more massive than Earth. Of interest is the observation that its density of 1400 kg/m³ is only slightly more dense than water (1000 kg/m³).

Although the rising sun may seem to occur at approximately the same azimuth when observed from day to day, a longer term observational project will reveal this to be far from the truth. In fact, if we were to mentally note the azimuth of the rising sun around summer solstice in June and repeat this exercise around winter solstice in December, we will note that the sun has shifted by approximately 65° during the intervening six months!

This "moving target" involving the rising (or setting) sun is due to the elliptical nature of our planet's orbit around the sun which is responsible for the variable arrival of the sun on the local meridian by up to 16 minutes early or late and the "Equation of Time" which is described and documented elsewhere on this site along with the variable altitude due to earth's tilt in its axis of rotation (23.45°) relative to its orbital plane.

Note: The image below is an extension of a prolonged effort to capture the Sun and Moon against notable foregrounds. The primary task in such an exercise is to very precisely reverse engineer the perspective of the foreground of interest with respect to its physical azimuth and altitude from my shooting location so as to have a suitable time series involving Sol in the background and as indicated by the image below.

One of the most beloved myths from Ancient Greece is that of Daedalus (Δαίδαλος) and his son Icarus (Ικαρος). Daedalus was recognized as a skilled craftsman who was hired my King Minos of Crete to construct a (complex) labyrynth to imprison the Minotaur (part man, part bull) who happened to be his wife's illegitimate son. In a twist of fate, King Minos imprisoned both Daedalus and his son Icarus in the labyrinth after Daedalus helped Ariadne, King Minos' daughter, with vital information as to how Theseus could enter the labyrynth to kill the Minotaur and successfully exit thereafter. With full control of both land and sea by King Minos, Daedalus and Icarus were effectively imprisoned with no means to escape and until Daedalus came up with the ingenious plan to construct wings from feathers held together with wax, thereby allowing both himself and his son to fly away from their prison. Prior to seeking their freedom, Daedalus advised the young Icarus not to fly too high since the Sun's heat would melt the wax holding their wings together and thereby lead to their demise. Similarly, flying too low would lead to moisture from the ocean dampening their wings. Although their escape towards the eastern Aegean was initially successful by virtue of their flight at a suitable altitude when approaching the islands of Samos and Delos, the young Icarus would quickly forget his father's earlier advice and soar higher in the sky and much closer to the Sun, thus causing his wings to slowly melt away and for him to fall to his death into the Aegean Sea. Daedalus buried Icarus in the immediate vicinity of his tragic drowning and named the nearby island Icaria in honour of his cherished son.

The stunning metal statue below is the work of the acclaimed Cypriot sculptor Panikos Spanos (1976-) and was unveiled at the boardwalk of Ayia Napa (Cyprus) in July/2020. The work was inspired and completed during the 7th International Sculpture Symposium of Ayia Napa (2019-2020) and whose theme was Greek history and mythology. Made of stainless steel, the statue below measures 3.6 meters in height and another three meters in width while sitting on a pedestal 3.1 meters above the ground. A second stunning public monument by the same sculptor depicts the mythological three-headed hound of Hades - Cerberus - and which is also on display at the Sculpture Park of Ayia Napa.

Note: For additional results involving the Sun, Moon and other celestial bodies rising or setting against well-known monuments and sites from around the world, please click here.