E-Books →The history of astronomy From prehistory to the 20th century

By studying megalithic sites such as those at Callanish in Scotland, the Stonehenge circle in England, dating from 2500 to 1700 BC. C., and the Carnac alignments in Brittany, astronomers and archaeologists have concluded that the alignments and circles served as landmarks indicating references. and important points on the horizon, such as the extreme positions of the rising and setting of the Sun and the Moon, throughout the year. These megalithic monuments are authentic observatories for predicting eclipses in the Stone Age.
At Stonehenge, each stone weighs an average of 26 tons. and the main avenue that runs from the center of the monument points to the place where the sun rises on the longest day of summer. In this structure, some stones are aligned with sunrise and sunset in early summer and winter. The Maya in Central America also had knowledge of the calendar and celestial phenomena, and the Polynesians learned to navigate through celestial observations.