Everything about Chinese Astronomy totally explained
Astronomy in China has a very long history.
Oracle bones from the
Shang Dynasty (
2nd millennium BC) record eclipses and novae. Detailed records of astronomical observations were kept from about the
6th century BC until the introduction of Western astronomy and the telescope in the
16th century. The practice of astronomy in
China was fundamentally changed by extended contact with Western astronomy. Today, China continues to be active in astronomy, with many observatories and
its own space program.
Early history
Purpose of astronomical observations in the past
One of the main functions was for the purpose of timekeeping. The Chinese used a
lunisolar calendar, but because the cycles of the Sun and the Moon are different,
intercalation had to be done.
The
Chinese calendar was considered to be symbol of a dynasty. As dynasties would rise and fall, astronomers and astrologers of each period would often prepare a new calendar to be made, with observations for that purpose.
Astrological
divination was also an important part of astronomy. Astronomers took careful note of "guest stars" which suddenly appeared among the
fixed stars. The
supernova that created the
Crab Nebula in
1054 is an example of a guest star observed by Chinese astronomers, recorded also by the Arabs, although it wasn't recorded by their European contemporaries. Ancient astronomical records of phenomena like supernovae and comets are sometimes used in modern astronomical studies.
Chinese constellations
History of Chinese constellations
The divisions of the sky began with the
Northern Dipper and the 28 mansions.
In early 1980s, a tomb was found at Xishuipo (西水坡) in
Puyang,
Henan Province. There were some clamshells and bones forming the images of the
Azure Dragon, the
White Tiger and the
Northern Dipper. It is believed that the tomb belongs to the
Neolithic Age, about 6,000 years ago.
Star names relating to the 28 lunar mansions were found on oracle bones dating back to the
Wuding Period, about 3,200 years ago.
In
1978, a lacquer box was excavated from the tomb of Zeng Hou Yin in Suixian,
Hubei Province. Names of the 28 lunar mansions were found on the cover of the box, proving that the use of this classification system was made before 433 BC.
As lunar mansions have such an ancient origin, the meaning of most of their names have become obscure. Even worse, name of each lunar mansion consists of only one Chinese word, and the meaning of which could vary at different times in history. So the meaning of the names are still under discussion.
Besides 28 lunar mansions, most constellations are based on the works of
Shi Shen-fu and
Gan De, who were astrologists during the period of
Warring States (481 BC - 221 BC) in China.
In the late period of the
Ming Dynasty, the agricultural scientist and mathematician
Xu Guangqi (1562 - 1633 AD) introduced 23 additional constellations which are near to the Celestial South Pole, which are based on star catalogues from the West (see
Matteo Ricci).
Star catalogues and Maps
Star catalogues
In the
4th century BC the two Chinese astronomers responsible for the earliest information going into the star catalogues are
Shi Shen and
Gan De of the
Warring States period.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Chinese Astronomy'.
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