The night sky plays a very big part in AC:CF, and you don’t want to ignore
it! There are lots of confusing yet interesting facts about it, so let’s dive
right into them!
Night Sky
This is what the average AC:CF night sky looks like – the stars, the moon,
and a constellation dotted here and there. Constellations are patterns of stars
which are shown by lines connecting them, and move across the sky during the night.
So, let’s look at them first!
Constellations
Constellations all follow the same movement pattern, which slowly changes throughout
the year.
To create a constellation, head to the Observatory, which is situated upstairs in
the museum. Walk up to the (very big!) telescope, and click on it. Celeste, the
red owl who takes care of the observatory, will ask you what you wanted the telescope
for. Select “Constellations!” and she will immediately let you begin
making constellations. Simply click on a star, and lines will point away from it,
connecting it with other stars which are close to it. Once you have made one line,
you can make other lines coming off it. Once you are done, you will be asked to
name the constellation you have made. Pick something snazzy and inspiring!
Once you have created one constellation, when you select that option when you use
the telescope, she will now ask you if you want to create a new one or change an
existing one. Celeste will also let you select “Stargazing!” which either
lets you look at the stars, or look up peak times, which we will explain later.
You can also choose “Erasing!” if you want to get rid of a constellation
which you don’t like.
A constellation will rise on the east side of the sky, and then set again on the
west side of the sky. When it is either rising or setting, it will be tilted sideways,
as the sky is shaped in a rainbow shape.
On average, a constellation will take 2.5 hours to move completely across the sky.
All constellations appear at different times. The first ones will appear at 6:00.p.m,
and the final ones will disappear at 6:00.a.m. As the year progresses, constellations
will appear earlier than they did before. Every constellation has a peak time. A
peak time is the time when a constellation is at the highest point in the sky, and
you can see it at it’s best. The day that a constellation peaks at 8:00.p.m
or 8:01.p.m is the day when it is most visible. Each day, a constellation’s
peak time will lower to 2 minutes earlier than the night before.
So, let’s say you have a constellation called Labelo. Labelo’s peak
time on 6/21 is 9:21.p.m. The next day, it’s peak time will become 9:19.p.m,
and on 6/23, 9:17.p.m, and so forth. Labelo would peak at 8:01.p.m on 7/31, making
8:01.p.m on 7/31 the best day to see it. In a whole month, Labelo’s peak time
would descend by 1 hour. So, by 8/31, it’s peak time would be 6:01.p.m.
Constellations can be any size and shape, and they can have up to 16 connections.
Show your creativity with your constellations, and why not display some of your
friends' too? If you go to somebody else’s observatory, you can view the stars
in their town. Once you have finished, Celeste will ask you if there was a particular
one that you liked. Once you choose one, Celeste will say that she hopes you will
be able to see it from the skies of your town. If there is not already another constellation
occupying that space in your town, then your friend’s constellation will appear
in your town that very night! A constellation can also randomly transfer to your
town without you asking Celeste.
The Moon
The moon has habits too – and it even causes it’s own effects!
The moon first appears at 4 PM, and will disappear at 7 AM. Those times are also
the beginning of sunset, and the end of sunrise.
When the moon first appears, it will be in the same position that constellations
are when they first appear. As the night progresses, it will slowly rise upwards
and start to tilt slightly to the left. The moon will peak in the sky at 11:30 PM,
and then will start to fall back down again and slowly disappear.
The moon also casts shadows off the trees and houses! As night begins, the moon
will cause dark shadows to be cast from the left from outdoor buildings, and as
sunrise begins, shadows will point sharply to the right from houses and trees. This
cycle starts again once daytime begins.
The moon goes through phases, just like it does in real life. As a new moon, it
is seen as just a gray circle. Eventually it will work it’s way up to a full
moon, and it will gradually become more of a white color.
Sunset and Sunrise
All of you have probably witnessed a sunset on AC:CF, just like one in real life.
AC:CF sunset officially begins at 4 PM, when the sky will begin to slowly turn gray
and then tint orange. Night time begins at 7 PM.
Sunset
The stars will first appear during the sunset, at 6:00 PM, however they are so faint
you can’t really see them until 6:04 PM. The moon will make the first quarter
of its journey across the sky in this period, which lasts from 4 PM to 9 PM.
Night time
This time takes up most of the night, and lasts from 9 PM to 4 AM. The moon will
make the second and third quarters of its journey across the sky, and the sky appears
a navy blue colour.
Sunrise
During the hours of 4 AM and 5 AM, the sky will slowly become lighter and turn from
a deep navy blue to a bright ocean blue. The stars and constellations will start
to fade during this time, and the moon will make the final quarter of its journey
across the sky. This time lasts from 4 AM to 7 AM. The stars will finally disappear
at 6 AM, but the moon will continue shining until 7 AM, when the morning finally
begins.
