It might appear fanciful, however as darkness approached – and with it a vanishingly uncommon lunar occasion – it felt as if the beasts and the birds of Stonehenge sensed one thing unusual was afoot.The tune of the skylarks and the flight of the starlings appeared significantly energetic; hares, animals which have legendary associations with the moon, loped with obvious objective across the stone circle; the people who had gathered on the monument turned skittish.Stonehenge is, in fact, intently linked with the rising and setting of the solar however there’s additionally a rising physique of thought that the traditional individuals who constructed the circle have been additionally fascinated by the moon – and acutely aware of a phenomenon now going down known as a “main lunar standstill”, one thing that solely occurs each 18.6 years.This weekend, archaeologists, astronomers and archaeoastronomers (who research how prehistoric individuals responded to the sky) arrived on the time of the complete moon to discover the speculation that the Stonehenge creators could have arrange some stones to mark the lunar standstill, when moonrise and moonset are farthest aside alongside the horizon.“It’s very thrilling,” mentioned Clive Ruggles, an emeritus professor of archaeoastronomy on the College of Leicester. “This can be a particular night time as a result of the moon is passing at its lowest doable path by way of the sky and likewise it’s full whereas it’s doing it so it’s the 2 issues collectively.”Ruggles, who was armed with charts, cameras and a theodolite, mentioned the important thing was 4 “station stones” that kind the corners of a rectangle framing the stone circle. When the moon rises at its most southerly level and units at its most northerly, it aligns with the station stones.“Was this all intentional?” requested Ruggles. “My very own thought is that sure, I feel individuals have been conscious that each 18th or nineteenth yr, there have been occasions when you would see the moon rising exceptionally far south, and setting exceptionally far north, and folks knew about it and remembered it.”From left: Fabio Silva, head of archeology and anthropology at Bournemouth College, Amanda Chadburn, visiting fellow at Bournemouth College, and Clive Ruggles, emeritus professor of archaeology and archaeoastronomy on the College of Leicester. {Photograph}: Adrian Sherratt/The GuardianHeather Sebire, English Heritage’s senior curator for Stonehenge, mentioned it made sense that the builders of Stonehenge would take discover of the moon. “They have been the primary farmers. They should have been observing the climate, the seasons. So they’d have been trying on the moon as nicely.”Sebire mentioned a few of Stonehenge’s bluestones caught the moonlight fantastically, including: “That may be one of many causes they used them.” She additionally defined that, throughout the early part of Stonehenge, individuals have been burying the cremated stays of the lifeless in a part of the monument that aligns with the station stones. “There could also be one thing in all this,” Sebire mentioned.Jennifer Wexler, a Stonehenge historian for English Heritage, mentioned the expansive nature of the panorama made it an exquisite place to look at not solely the falling solar however the rising moon, particularly when it’s a massive one. “It looks like this type of seesaw of cosmic entities. It’s very highly effective.”These current had a way of kinship with different websites the world over the place the complete moon standstill was being noticed. Related cohorts have been watching it on the Calanais standing stones on the Isle of Lewis in Scotland, at Chimney Rock, Colorado, a Chacoan historic settlement, and on the Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles.skip previous publication promotionOur morning electronic mail breaks down the important thing tales of the day, telling you what’s taking place and why it mattersPrivacy Discover: Newsletters could comprise data about charities, on-line adverts, and content material funded by exterior events. For extra info see our Privateness Coverage. We use Google reCaptcha to guard our web site and the Google Privateness Coverage and Phrases of Service apply.after publication promotionModern life does trespass on the phenomenon at Stonehenge. Automobiles and lorries roar previous shut by on the A303 and, sadly, a plantation on the horizon obscures the sight line to the spot on the horizon the place essentially the most southerly moon first seems.Solely two of the 4 station stones are nonetheless in place. Markers present the place English Heritage believes the 2 lacking stones have been positioned – however among the archaeoastronomers assume one could also be barely out. A brief marker – a purse – was positioned on the spot the place they consider it might have been.The UK climate, inevitably, additionally has its say. Because the time of the moon rise approached on Friday night time, clouds rolled in and there was a high-quality drizzle. There was a dim glow over the plantation however no nice, awe-inspiring moon, making any significant measurements difficult.It wasn’t a catastrophe. The exact date of the lunar standstill is in January 2025 and it may be studied for months both facet.“It’s a disgrace the clouds got here,” mentioned Fabio Silva, a senior lecturer in archaeological modelling at Bournemouth College. “However this stuff occur. We’ll produce other possibilities. We’ll be again.”