What Makes Almagest
THE EARTH is represented by a fixed globe around which the planets rotate. Almagest is not intended as a view of the Solar System but is a representation of the appearance of 'the heavens' as viewed by someone on Earth.
THE SUN. Almagest faithfully and accurately charts the daily rising and setting
of the Sun. Consult Almagest at dawn and you will witness the Sun slowly rise above the
horizon. Conversely at dusk you will see the Sun slowly set.
THE MOON. Almagest demonstrates the movements of the Moon rotating around the Earth and you will notice how its position relative to the Sun changes in monthly cycles.
THE PLANETS. Almagest shows the five visible planets and charts their progress as they
wander across the sky. You will observe how they all gradually change their positions relative
to the Sun and to each other.
THE ZODIAC RING represents the background of stars through which the Moon and planets appear to travel (the Sun too but this has to be deduced as the Sun and stars are not visible at the same time).
HORIZON PLATE. At any one time six of the signs of the Zodiac are hidden beneath a
brass plate which is how Almagest demonstrates that half the starry firmament is below the
horizon.
CONTROL BOX. Almagest will show you the configuration of the Heavens at any time or
place between 1,000 BC and 5,000 AD. Just set the date, the latitude and the longitude and
Almagest will display the exact position of the Sun, Moon and planets in the sky.
DATA SCREEN. For those who want more detailed information about the
position of the planets. Just input your time and space data and the screen
will display the exact ecliptic longitude and latitude of each planet as well as its altitude and
azimuth.