A star rises about four minutes earlier every night. The Earth turns once against the distant stars in 23 hours and 56 minutes; the clock’s other four minutes go on catching up with the Sun, because in a day we have moved about a degree along our orbit and have to turn a little farther to bring it back to the same place in the sky. Four minutes a night doesn’t sound like much, but it comes to two hours a month, and over a year to one whole extra turn: the Earth spins about 366 times against the stars for every 365 sunrises. That one uncounted day is why the winter sky isn’t the summer one. Orion hasn’t gone anywhere in July. He’s up there in the daylight, rising and setting with the Sun, while the four minutes bring him round again.