Elentir
New Member
Now that we're done with the Council, let me share my thoughts on the red star seen in the South above the rim of the valley. I think it was Mars, especially since Mars behaved in exactly the same way in the fall and winter of 1939, when Tolkien was writing this part of the book. Mars reached opposition in the summer of 1939 when it was very bright in the South at midnight (in Capricorn). As the year progressed, Mars drifted eastward and northward in the sky against the westward motion the the fixed stars. By the end of October and through the end of December Mars hung in the southern sky after sunset due to that eastward and northward drift. You can use one of the many on-line planetarium programs to see this yourself.
