Stonehenge

Twice a year, during the longest day and night, the sun’s path aligns ever so gently with the ruins of Stonehenge. During the summer solstice, viewers can see the sun’s rise crest the central heel stone. The winter solstice sees the sun set across the site’s altar stone. Use this interactive to tour the historic site and check its current skyscape.

In the 1960s, scientists used a then-new technology—the computer—to analyze the placement of the Stonehenge stones in relation to the heavens. They decided that Stonehenge must have served as an ancient astronomical computer, accurately predicting lunar eclipses and other celestial events. Today’s scholars aren’t so sure. Here, BBC Sky at Night magazine covers the evolution of the astronomical theory of Stonehenge.

Stonehenge is considered a sacred site by many modern-day druids and pagans. Then artist Jeremy Deller came along and recreated the monument as … a bouncy house? The inflatable artwork, measuring more than 100 feet across, invites the public to jump all over this symbol of British national identity. It has been displayed in Paris, in London during the 2012 Olympics and even at Stonehenge itself.

Prehistoric people approached Stonehenge via a route archaeologists call “The Avenue.” If they stood in the center of the circle and looked back down the Avenue on the summer solstice, they’d see the sunrise framed by the large sarsen stones. If you can’t visit Stonehenge in person, this interactive 3D virtual tour—complete with sidebars and video explainers—is the next best thing.

What is a henge anyway? Where did the theory that aliens built it come from? How did some guy manage to buy Stonehenge as a gift for his wife for only £6,000? Host Greg Jenner breaks down the big questions about Stonehenge on this comedic history podcast from BBC Radio 4, with help from stand-up comedian Richard Herring and archaeologist Susan Greaney.

Located about 90 miles west of London, Stonehenge is one of the world’s most famous and mysterious prehistoric monuments. Built around the same time as Egypt’s Great Pyramid, this complex of giant stones, some weighing up to 30 tons, has captivated archaeologists and historians for over a thousand years. Want to learn more about this ancient marvel? Check out 1440's video explainer.

Back in the day, access to Stonehenge was free and open to all; families would picnic there, and there was even a Woodstock-inspired music festival that drew up to 100,000 attendees. Then, in 1985, Margaret Thatcher put the kibosh on the festival, blocking off road access and calling in 1,300 riot police to violently arrest festival goers. This documentary features footage from that day. People have been largely banned from the central part of the monument ever since, except on solstices and equinoxes.

Scientific advances like radiocarbon dating and DNA analysis have upended what we know about the people who built Stonehenge. The Guardian explains how forensic geology and isotopic analysis of the teeth of a man who died 4,350 years ago reveal that those societies were likely much less violent and more cooperative than previously thought.

At the University of Salford, acoustics researcher Trevor Cox has been doing sound experiments on a scale model of Stonehenge that he keeps inside a soundproof studio. He found that the monument had concert-hall acoustics, which might tell us something about why it was built. A BBC video crew visited Cox’s office for a demonstration of its special sound.

Every year, some 15,000 people make the pilgrimage to Stonehenge to watch the sunrise on the summer solstice. And hundreds of thousands more watch the event from home, live-streamed on YouTube. Among those that attend solstice celebrations in person are neo-druids in white hooded robes, performing spiritual ceremonies among the stones.