Above: A male Bogong moth and a diagram of their annual migration.
Guided by the Light from Within
SPACEWEATHER.COM NEWS: 07/17/2025
MOTHS FOLLOW THE MILKY WAY: Astronomers come in all shapes and sizes–even invertebrates. A new study published in Nature reveals that Australian moths can see and decipher the night sky. They pay particular attention to the Milky Way and seem capable of navigating using the Carina nebula as a visual landmark.
Every spring in southeast Australia, billions of Bogong moths take flight under cover of darkness. It’s the beginning of an epic migration as much as 1,000 kilometers long. Their destination: a small cluster of caves in the Australian Alps–places the moths have never visited before, yet somehow navigate to with remarkable precision. Their compass, it turns out, is the night sky itself.
Reaching this conclusion required the researchers to do something you probably don’t want to think about too closely: They attached the moths to tiny little tethers. Moths could lift off and pick a direction, but not escape.
The experiment unfolded inside a special moth planetarium (pictured right). Star patterns were projected onto an overhead screen, while the ambient magnetic field was nulled by Helmholtz coils, guaranteeing that the participants could not “cheat” using magnetic navigation. When shown a normal star field, the moths oriented in the correct direction. But when the stars were scrambled into random patterns, they lost their bearings.
To dig deeper, the researchers recorded activity from visual neurons in the moths’ brains as a projected night sky rotated overhead. Neurons fired most strongly when the stars aligned with the moth’s inherited migratory heading. Some neurons were tuned to the brightest region of the Milky Way (especially near the Carina nebula) suggesting that this band of starlight is a visual landmark.
Clouds produced the next revelation: Bogong moths remained oriented even when stars were hidden. In those cases, they relied on Earth’s magnetic field instead, revealing a dual-compass system similar to that of migratory birds. When both stellar and magnetic cues were removed, the moths became disoriented again.
Upper row: Laboratory-projected night skies during spring and autumn, and an autumn sky with its stars randomly arranged. Lower row: The moths’ reaction to each sky.
In recent years, scientists have discovered that many creatures are guided by the stars. In addition to humans, the list includes migratory songbirds, possibly seals, dung beetles, cricket frogs, and now Bogong moths. The list of lifeforms guided by magnetism is even longer, ranging in size from microbes to whales.
Nature may be telling us something: The Universe is everyone’s map.
CHANCE OF FLARES TODAY: Don’t be surprised if there is a solar flare today. NOAA forecasters estimate a 60% chance of M-class flares from one of at least four sunspots with unstable magnetic fields.
And, Earth is still inside a stream of solar wind flowing from this southern coronal hole.
The Sun Today – Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO)
TRECENA OF TRANSFORMER/CIMI: Transition from Death to a New Life
The “Tzolk’in Field Guide” is my gift to download that includes the Count of Days with the aspects for each Destiny Kin and highlights for a personal practice with each trecena. It’s designed as a companion for daily practice.
Visit the 13-Day Trecena Guide. to download a free copy. Volume 1 covers the first two seasons of the Tzolk’in, and Volume 2 covers the 3rd and 4th to the end of the Tzolk’in round.
CIMI is the 1st trecena of the second season of the Tzolk’in round, found in Volume 1. There’s something more to see when you discern the meaning of Time for yourself. The Truth is revealed by the thoughts on your mind. The Human calendar is written within as Humans course of Migration, thoughts in a Divine Order that lead us back to the place where we belong.
6 Monkey/CHUEN (Cherokee, Raccoon/KVH’LI) – Day 6 of 13 of the 1 Transformer/CIMI trecena.
Descriptions by Ian Xel Lungold (12 Sun/AHAU), wisdom and Free Tzolk’in online calculator preserved on MayanMajix.com
Galactic Tone 6: Six is responsiveness and the art of negotiation. It is the movement of volume through space that creates time. This energy in action is like the art of dance or a great athlete in motion. Six facilitates dynamic developments in all aspects of life.
Monkey/CHUEN: Monkey is known to the Maya as the Weaver or Weaver of Time. Monkey takes ideas as threads of vines and weaves them into the fabric of our reality. New patterns or inventions are also woven into our lives by Monkey. Amiable, intelligent, generous and a jack of all trades, Monkey’s innocent curiosity leads to artistic expression and constructive solutions. Many Monkeys become highly respected merchants or speakers. They love performing practical jokes and crave attention, so much so that they may over-act or play the fool to get the spotlight. Monkeys have a short attention span and find it difficult to stay with anything long enough to master it.
A GOOD DAY TO: Begin anything new in your life.
Cherokee, Raccoon/KVH’LI: Star Symbol: Algol, a star in Perseus. Restless energy yearning for long-lost love. Algol was named DEMON STAR or MISCHIEVOUS ONE by the Ancients because it winks and fades at times. Raccoons are full of friendly mischief, eager to swap kisses for candy; magnetic leaders, full of humor and gaiety. Favorite food is corn, the mainstay of the Cherokee. Very artistic while being the “masked bandit” who steals your heart.
[Text in italics was the primary source of inspiration for my journal. These are the sources that started my journey and they are the reference for interpretation each day. By providing the original text, I hope to offer a way to see what inspired my thoughts and by including all the aspects – allow for something more to inspire you. Mayan descriptions are those written by Ian Lungold. Cherokee descriptions came from multiple sources. Links to sources and other resources of study are offered on the Daykeeper Resources Page. ~Debra]
