Australian nature Wheel 2024

The Australian Nature Wheel is a celebration of nature’s annual cycle of change. Beautifully captured on 170gsm satin paper (594mm x 841mm) it showcases the beautiful country we are privileged to live on and enjoy. The passing of time is seen as cyclical and has been designed to illustrate the interconnectedness of the world around us. Multiple layers representing the seasons, the orbital plane and night sky are depicted from an Australian perspective, understanding that localised observations vary considerably across our continent.

The Sun is the central point from where everything in our Solar System revolves. Appearing to move anticlockwise in the southern hemisphere, the Sun commences its astrological journey at the first point of Aries, the autumn equinox. Each year two solstices and two equinoxes mark four important points in Earth’s orbit around the Sun. It is the Earth’s position in its orbit and orientation of its tilted axis at these points that defines the seasons. The inner circle represents the astronomical seasons and is surrounded by the meteorological seasons observed in Australia, followed by the wet and dry seasons experienced in areas closer to the equator.

Australia’s native flora form the phenological rim. Represented from each state and territory, they appear in the month in which they bloom. Native fauna and national environmental and cultural events are listed.

The constellations on the path of the ecliptic are collectively called the zodiac and mark 30° of the plane of the Solar System. Dates for each zodiac sign and their element are displayed. Moon phases, including super and micro moons and a penumbral eclipse are included.

There are thirteen astronomical constellations that lie on the ecliptic, the 13th being Ophiuchus. The Sun spends different amounts of time travelling through each of these constellations as they are all different shapes and sizes, and the boundaries for these can be seen along with shape of the star patterns seen in the sky.

Designed, illustrated and written by Lisa Mitchell, of Living Cycles in Far North NSW.  She writes, ‘this calendar is pictorial and symbolic.  It is not intended to be an astronomically correct representation as the tropical zodiac no longer corresponds to the constellations of stars that now appear in the sky.  It has been designed as a national representation, understanding that localised seasonal shifts vary considerably across our continent.  Likewise, this information is not exhaustive, but an invitation to explore the natural world around you.’