A team of researchers from the University of Adelaide, led by Dr. Gail Higginbottom, has established that the great ancient stone monuments in Britain really were constructed specifically in line with the movements of the Sun and Moon 5,000 years ago. They point out that nobody has ever before statistically determined that any stone circle was constructed with astronomical phenomena in mind. Previously, researchers supposed that it may be so, but there was no concrete evidence which could confirm this belief before the present study. Using innovative 2D and 3D technology to construct quantitative tests of the alignment patterns of the standing stones, the researchers found an impressive concentration of alignments towards the Sun and Moon at different times of their cycles.

The researchers examined some of the oldest great stone circles built in Scotland such as Callanish, on the Isle of Lewis, and Stenness, Isle of Orkney ─ both predating Stonehenge's standing stones by about 500 years. They found that at 50% of the sites, the northern horizon is relatively higher and closer than the southern and the summer solstice Sun rises out of the highest peak in the north. At the other 50% of sites, the southern horizon is higher and closer than the northern, with the winter solstice Sun rising out of these highest horizons. The ancients erected these huge stones very precisely within the landscape and in relation to the astronomy they knew. What technology they used is still not understood by mainstream science.

Those who created the megaliths chose surroundings that would have influenced the way the Sun and Moon were seen. They were able to depict the special time when the Moon appears at its most northerly position on the horizon, which only happens every 18.6 years and took place when the stone monuments were made. The publication by Dr. Higginbottom and her team confirmed that the ancient Britons connected the Earth to the Sun and Moon with their earliest standing stones, and that this practice continued in the same way for 2,000 years.

Source reference: Ancient Origins
http://www.ancient-origins.net/news-history-archaeology/stone-hard-evidence-researchers-prove-british-megaliths-are-connected-sun-020952?nopaging=1

Credit for Image at top f page: The Callanish standing stones on the Isle of Lewis. (Colin Macdonald/CC BY 2.0)