Winter solstice instant of the solstice can be calculated, direct observation of the solstice by amateurs is impossible because the sun moves too slowly or appears to stand still (the meaning of "solstice"). However, by use of astronomical data tracking, the precise timing of its occurrence is now public knowledge. One cannot directly detect the precise instant of the solstice (by definition, one cannot observe that an object has stopped moving until one later observes that it has not moved further from the preceding spot, or that it has moved in the opposite direction). Further, to be precise to a single day,
Six Months in a Leaky Boat Six Months in a Leaky Boat "Six Months in a Leaky Boat" is a single from New Zealand art rock group Split Enz's album "Time and Tide". It was written by Tim Finn and released as a single in 1982. The song is a reference to the time it took pioneers to sail to New Zealand (hence the reference to Aotearoa and "The Tyranny of Distance" - a by Geoffrey Blainey), and a metaphor that refers to lead singer Tim Finn's nervous breakdown. The song was "discouraged from airplay" in Britain during the Falklands War by the BBC for reasons