The Temple Complex of Ggantija and the Major Lunar Standstill as Given by the Photographer's Ephemeris

Abstract

With the Photographer’s Ephemeris, a well-known software used for planning outdoor photography, it is easy to investigate the astronomical alignment along sunrise/sunset or moonrise/moonset of any monument or site. In fact, the software is giving the directions of rising and setting of the sun and of the moon on a satellite image or map of the site. Here, we apply this software to the temple complex of Ggantija, on the island of Gozo, Malta, to evidence the alignment of these temples along the southern moonrise azimuth on a major lunar standstill, alignment that had been already discussed in the scientific literature.