APPENDIX A
According to the official Handbook of the Boy Scouts, if you are a Scout and want to win a merit badge for starcraft, you must
(1) Have a general knowledge of the nature of the stars and planets.
(a) By the nature of the stars and planets is meant their colors and what they are made of. Their sizes and their distances from the Earth in a general way may also be included.
(b) It is easy to tell the color of both the stars and the planets by looking at them, or by looking them up in the foregoing chapters.
(c) The spectroscope shows that the stars are made of metals and gases and other substances which we have on Earth. The planets are probably made of the same kinds of metals, gases and substances as those which form the Earth, but there is no way of proving this, for the planets shine by reflected light, and in this case the spectroscope is of little use.
(d) The stars are known to be suns as large or larger than our Sun; while the planets are about as large as our Earth—some smaller and some larger.
(e) All of the planets are within 2,800 millions of miles of the Earth, while the nearest star, except our Sun, is 25 trillions of miles from the Earth, or 8,000 times as far away.
(2) Have a general knowledge of the movements of the stars and planets.
(a) While all the stars revolve in orbits and are moving through space at high speed, they are so far away from us that they seem to be fixed and for all practical purposes they may be considered to be fixed in their positions.
(b) All the planets turn on their own axes and travel in orbits round the Sun.
(3) Point out and name 12 principal constellations.
(a) Twelve easy constellations are: (1) The Big Dipper; (2) The Little Dipper; (3) Cassiopeia; (4) Pegasus; (5) Orion; (6) Auriga and (7) Taurus, all of which are shown in [Chapters I] and [II]; (8) Gemini; (9) Leo; (10) Virgo; (11) The Scorpion, and (12) Sagittarius, which are constellations of the zodiac, and are shown in [Chapter XI].
(4) Find the North by means of other stars than the Pole Star (which is the North Star) in case that star is obscured by clouds.
(a) This can be done by finding the constellation of Cassiopeia, [see Chapter I]; and also by Pegasus; Auriga and Orion, as explained in [Chapter II].
(5) Have a general knowledge of the positions and movements of the Earth, Sun, Moon, and the Planets; and of tides, eclipses, meteors and comets.
(a) By reading the chapters on the Sun, Planets, Earth and Moon and
(b) Other things in the sky carefully, you will be able to pass the requirements named in No. 5.
(6) Plot on at least two nights per month for six months the positions of all naked eye planets visible between sundown and one hour thereafter. The plot of each planet shall contain at least three fixed stars with their names or designations; colors of planets and stars are to be recorded as observed.
(a) How to plot the position of a planet is fully explained in the chapter on Planets, but you should also read the one on The Stars of the Zodiac, and have a good star map (App. O).