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Transcript
History of Astronomy Ancients - Antiquity Amy Nelson PHY3901 September 13, 2004 Chinese Astronomy Mankind’s first astronomical records ~3000BC First recorded solar eclipse 2136BC Ahead of their time designs for astronomical instruments Forecasting solar eclipses Devised calendar 12 lunar months 365.25 days The Ecliptic Armillary Sphere Qing Dynasty Egyptian Astronomy In order to maintain power, pharaohs and priests used astronomy to predict the annual flooding of the Nile This yearly flooding was imperative to survival in the dry African desert Early astronomers discovered the flooding coincided with the rise of Sirius 25 days after the summer solstice Egyptian Astronomy 2000BC Amenhotep wrote a catalog of stars 5 constellations recorded along with 36 decans. Decans were a method of telling time at night Each decan rises 40 minutes later every night 18 of these decans are used for telling time at night Only 12 are visible due to dusk and dawn lights Egyptians believed that many of the stars and planets were actually the gods and goddesses they worshipped Ra- the sun god traveled in his chariot across the sky each day Nut- the sky goddess was the actual sky and all the stars were her children. Pyramids were aligned precisely with Ursa Major and Orion. These were believed to be the most holy of stars In order for the deceased to be reincarnated, they had to reach this destination from their place of burial. Elaborate ceremonies were held called Pedj Shes or the “stretching of the cord” before each pyramid was built Egyptian Astronomy Babylonian Astronomy One of the first cultures to base astronomy on mathematical theory Development of astronomy as a science due to inconsistency of lunar months with solar years New calendar evenly distributed the months so there were not days left over at the end of the year Earliest records date back to ~ 1800BC Had names for several constellations Many of today’s constellations are simply Greek and Latin translations of the Babylonian names Babylonian Astronomy Eclipses recorded onto a tablet circa 518 and 465 BC Mentions the death of King Xerxes Greek and Roman Astronomy Became a science Based on geometry and mathematics, not physics Many new theories emerged from some rather famous names Greek and Roman Astronomy Pythagoras ~500BC Recognized the earth was spherical Found that the moon was inclined to the Equator Discovered Venus is both the morning and the evening star Most famous for his theorem c²= a²+b² This theorem became an integral tool for the measurement of stars Greek and Roman Astronomy Euxodus ~370BC Developed mechanical system to explain the motion of the planets Aristotle ~300BC Geocentric theory Hipparchus ~140BC Divided stars into groups of apparent brightness This system of magnitude of brightness is still used today Greek and Roman Astronomy Ptolemy ~127-41AD Epicycles Almagest Small circular motion in a larger circular motion, or deferent Explained retrograde Source of all Greek and Roman advances of the time Geocentric believer Ptolemaic theory stood for 1500 years, the Renaissance (you’ll have to wait till next time for the exciting heliocentric theory!) Greek and Roman Astronomy Greek and Roman Astronomy Aries- Roman god of War Andromeda- daughter of Cepheus and Cassiopeia. Taken by Poseidon. Mother of Perseus Greek and Roman Astronomy Cassiopeia- Queen of Ethiopia who claimed she was as beautiful as the Nereids Draco- first lawgiver in ancient Greece Greek and Roman Astronomy Orion- Greek Hunter Pegasus- winged horse of Poseidon Bibliography www.learnwhatsup.com www.egyptology.com/astronomy.htm www.spacetoday.org www.astronomy.com www.greek-astronomy.com Clagett, Marshall. Ancient Egyptian Science Volume II. American Philosophical Society, Philadelphia. 1995. Hoskin, Michael. The Cambridge Illustrated History of Astronomy. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. 1997. Lockyer, J. Norman. The Dawn of Astronomy. The MIT Press, Cambridge. 1964. O’Neil, W.M. Early Astronomy From Babylonia to Copernicus. Sydney University Press, Sydney. 1986.
