Untitled It is often difficult to know which of them is due proper credit for their bodies of work. hipparchus made his observations from Bithynia, at rhodes, where he spent much of his later life, and also http://www.roamingastronomer.com/marsastro/mu000069.txt
Extractions: Date: Jul 12 2001 18:46:42 EDT Subject: Martian Chronicles, July 2001, Part 2 of 2 ================================================== MARTIAN CHRONICLES - PART 2 OF 2 Newsletter of the Museum Astronomical Resource Society Volume 17, Number 7 - July 2001 ================================================== CONTENTS ================================================== - Biography: Hipparchus - Constellation of the Month: Hercules - Celestial Almanac - Meteor Showers - This Month in History - Publication Information - Newsletter Edition Details - Club Information ================================================== BIOGRAPHY by James M. Thomas ================================================== Hipparchus Born about 190 BC in Nicaea, Bithynia, died after 127 BC, possibly in Rhodes. (Pronounced "hi - PAR - kus") Hipparchus was a Greek astronomer and mathematician who discovered the precession of the equinoxes, determined the lengths of the four seasons, calculated the length of the year to within 6.5 minutes, compiled the first known star catalog, and made an early formulation of trigonometry. He was probably the greatest observational astronomer of ancient times. Sometimes referenced as Hipparchus of Nicaea or Hipparchus of Rhodes, his name was also spelled Hipparchos. Little is known of Hipparchus's life and the only book of his to survive is a commentary he made on the work of Greek poet Aratus (about 310 BC - about 240 BC). Most contemporary knowledge of Hipparchus is contained in the writings of the Greek geographer and historian Strabo of Amaseia (64/63 BC - about AD 23) and in the great astronomical compendium 'Almagest' by Greek astronomer Ptolemy (about AD100 - about 170). Ptolemy often quotes Hipparchus, and it is obvious that he thought highly of him; in fact, because of the slow progress of early science, Ptolemy speaks of Hipparchus with the respect due a distinguished contemporary, although almost three centuries separated the the two. It is often difficult to know which of them is due proper credit for their bodies of work. Hipparchus made his observations from Bithynia, at Rhodes, where he spent much of his later life, and also, it seems, at Alexandria. The year 127 BC is usually cited as the last date known for his actual work. French astronomer Jean-Baptiste-Joseph Delembre (1749-1822) clearly demonstrated that some observations of Hipparchus on the star Eta Canis Majoris ("Aludra") could well have been carried out in that year. (He used the star, then at 90° of right ascension, for convenience in astronomical reckoning.) In all his work Hipparchus showed a clear mind and a dislike for unnecessarily complex hypotheses. He rejected not only all astrological teaching but also the heliocentric (Sun-centered) views of the universe that seem to have been proposed, according to Archimedes (about 287-212 BC), by Aristarchus of Samos (flourished about 270 BC) and that were revived by Seleucus the Babylonian, a contemporary of Hipparchus. With respect, it is important to note that strong arguments had been advanced against the idea that the Earth moved, and the general climate of opinion had never been favorable to persue the earlier theories of Aristarchus. Beyond that, much work had been done to explain most of the irregularities observed in the motions of the Sun, Moon and planets when considered within a geocentric (Earth-centered) universe. The work involved the use of a system of movable eccentrics and a system of epicycles and deferents. It was based on the erroneous belief that all celestial movement is regular and circular, or at least that it is best described in terms of a system of regular motion in circles. In the system of movable eccentrics, the centers of the supposed orbits of bodies around the Earth were themselves revolving around the Earth. In the other system, epicycles were small circles theoretically imposed on the great circular orbital paths, called deferents. The epicycle-deferent mechanism was used along with the movable eccentric mechanism in Ptolemy's late version of the geocentric system. It was this Ptolemaic geocentric system that was handed down to western European science, but it must be remembered that the views of Hipparchus had a profound influence on Ptolemy, as he himself acknowledged. It was not until the 15th century that regular observations over very long periods showed the geocentric hypothesis to be too complex to be acceptable and Copernicus proposed that the Sun is the center of the universe. We know few details about the instruments that Hipparchus used. It seems likely that he observed with the devices common in his day, although Ptolemy credits him with the invention of an improved type of theodolite with which to measure angles. Hipparchus is best known for his discovery of the precessional movement of the equinoxes; i.e., the changing of the measured positions of the stars resulting from the movement of the points of intersection of the ecliptic (the plane of the Earth's orbit) and of the celestial equator (the great circle formed in the sky by the projection outward of the Earth's equator). It appears that Hipparchus wrote a work with the phrase "precession of the equinoxes" in the title. The term is still in current use, although the phenomenon is more usually referred to merely as "precession." This notable discovery was the result of painstaking observations worked upon by an acute mind. Hipparchus observed the positions of the stars and then compared his results with those of Timocharis of Alexandria about 150 years earlier and with even earlier observations made in Babylonia. He discovered that the celestial longitudes were different and that this difference was of a magnitude exceeding that attributable to errors of observation. He therefore proposed precession to account for the size of the difference and he gave a value of 45 or 46 seconds of arc for the annual changes. This is very close to the figure of 50.26 accepted today and is a value far superior to the 36 that Ptolemy obtained. The discovery of precession enabled Hipparchus to obtain more nearly correct values for the tropical year (the period of the Sun's apparent revolution from an equinox to the same equinox again), and also for the sidereal year (the period of the Sun's apparent revolution from a fixed star to the same fixed star). Again he was extremely accurate, so that his value for the tropical year was too large by only 6 1/2 minutes. Observations of star positions measured in terms of celestial latitude and longitude, as was customary in ancient times, were carried out by Hipparchus and entered in a catalogthe first star catalog ever to be completed. Hipparchus measured the stellar positions with greater accuracy than any observer before him, and his observations were of use to Ptolemy and even later to Edmond Halley. To catalog the stars was thought by some of Hipparchus' contemporaries to be an impiety, but he persevered. Hipparchus had been stimulated in 134 BC by observing a "new star." Concluding that such a phenomenon indicated a lack of permanency in the number of "fixed" stars, he determined to catalog them, and no criticism was able to deflect him from his original purpose. Hipparchus' catalog, completed in 129 BC, listed about 850 stars (not 1,080 as is often stated), the apparent brightnesses of the stars were specified by a system of six magnitudes similar to that used today. For its time, the catalog was a monumental achievement. Hipparchus also attacked the problem of the relative size of the Sun and Moon and their distance from the Earth. It had long been appreciated that the apparent diameter of each was the same, and various astronomers had attempted to measure the ratio of size and distance of the two bodies. Eudoxus obtained a value of 9:1, Phidias (father of Archimedes) 12:1, Archimedes himself 30:1; while Aristarchus believed 20:1 to be correct. The present-day value is, approximately, 393:1. Hipparchus followed the method used by Aristarchus, a procedure that depends upon measuring the breadth of the Earth's shadow at the distance of the Moon (the measurement being made by timing the transit of the shadow across the Moon's disk during a lunar eclipse). This method really gives the parallax (the apparent change in the position of a celestial body when observed from two different directions), and thus the distance, of the Moon, the parallax for the Sun being too small to give a significant result; moreover the accuracy obtainable for the distance even of the Moon is poor. Dissatisfied with his results, Hipparchus attempted to find the limits within which the solar parallax must lie for observations and calculations of a solar eclipse to agree; he hoped that differences between solar and lunar parallax might thus also be revealed. He obtained no satisfactory result from his efforts, however, and concluded that the solar parallax was probably negligible. At least he appreciated that the distance of the Sun was very great. ================================================== CONSTELLATION OF THE MONTH by Craig MacDougal ================================================== Hercules If the afternoon thunderstorms have cleared out by 9:30 at night, then go out to get a look at our constellation for July. Face toward the east, and look most of the way up to zenith. There you will find a square made up of 2nd and 3rd magnitude stars. This square covers an area of the sky a bit smaller than your fist at arms length, and it's noticeably "squashed" on the right end. This "squashed square" (also known as the "keystone") is the key part of that legendary strong man of old: HERCULES (HER-q-lees). The keystone is generally considered to be his torso, or thereabouts. His head is generally considered to be off to the right of the keystone, and he's usually shown facing east. So you can imagine our strong man running full tilt back toward the horizon with the pelt of Leo on his back. (Remember Leo?) The story of Hercules is a long one that has been told in a variety of forms for thousands of years. His mother was Alcmene, the most beautiful and wise of the mortal women. His father was Zeus. (It's beginning to seem like half of the characters portrayed in the sky were fathered by Zeus.) Zeus visited Alcmene disguised as her husband. (Visiting beautiful women while in disguise was apparently a hobby of Zeus.) Anyway, Zeus also arranged for the infant to drink some of his wife's (Hera) milk. Having drunk the milk of a goddess, Hercules was now immortal. Hera was quite annoyed over the entire situation. She could not kill Hercules, but she vowed to make his life very miserable. Hera made Hercules temporarily insane at one point, and this caused him to kill his family. When he came to himself, he was of course remorseful and asked the Oracle at Delphi how he might atone for this. The Oracle's instructions were to serve the king of Mycenae for twelve years. The king gave him a set of tasks that are known as the Labors of Heracles. (Heracles is the original form of the name. The version we know is Greek.) The first task was to kill a certain invincible lion. (Sound familiar yet?) He also killed a multi-headed monster, which became the constellation Hydra. While he was battling Hydra, a crab came out of the rocks and started going after Hercules' ankles. This didn't last long, since Hercules simply stepped on it between swings of his sword. For this short scene, the crab gets billing in the sky as the constellation Cancer. (I guess he had connections with Zeus, or something.) Anyway, Hercules completes the original ten Labors. The king however, points out that Hercules had help on one of them, and got greedy on another. So he gives him two more, expecting to do him in for sure this time. Hercules cheerfully dispatches a dragon (Draco), and rather than kill the three-headed watchdog of the underworld, dragged him back to the king. The king was surprised to see Hercules, and more surprised to be staring at this none-too-happy watchdog that Hercules had (for now) a firm grip on. The king wisely proclaimed that Hercules was a free man, and graciously suggested that he take his "puppy" outside before he let go of it. (Whew!) Let's turn back to the keystone, for about a third of the way from the upper left corner, to the upper right corner, is one of the glories of the heavens. Check this spot with binoculars, and you will find a fuzzy spot. This is M13, the great Hercules globular cluster. Now you have seen with your own eyeballs this grand collection of many thousands of stars that adorns the pages of every book on astronomy that I know. ================================================== CELESTIAL ALMANAC by James M. Thomas ================================================== MOON PHASES: Full Moon - July 5, 11:04AM EDT Last Qtr. - July 13, 2:45PM EDT New Moon - July 20, 3:44PM EDT First Qtr. - July 27, 6:08AM EDT MOON APOGEE AND PERIGEE: Apogee - July 9, 7:23AM EDT, 252,007 mi (405,566 km) from Earth Perigee - July 21, 4:46PM EDT, 223,089 mi (359,027 km) from Earth PLANETS: MERCURY - (mag. 1.7 to -0.2), dist. 63.4 - 90.0 mill. mi (120.0 - 14.5 mill. km); bright in the morning sky; moving through constellations Orion and Gemini toward Cancer VENUS - (mag. -4.1), dist. 92.1 mill. mi (148.2 mill. km); rising just before dawn; in constellation Taurus MARS - (mag. -2.2 to -1.5), dist. 42.4 - 50.7 mill. mi (68.2 - 81.6 mill. km); in constellation Scorpius near the star Antares JUPITER - (mag. -1.9), dist. 560.8 mill. mi (902.5 mill. km); in constellation Orion SATURN - (mag. +0.2), dist. 911.5 mill. mi (1,466.9 mill. km); in constellation Taurus URANUS - (mag. +5.7), dist. 1,774.4 mill. mi (2,855.6 mill. km); in constellation Capricornus NEPTUNE - (mag. +7.8), dist. 2,705.2 mill. mi (4,353.6 mill. km); in constellation Capricornus PLUTO - (mag. +13.8), dist. 2,752.2 mill. mi (4,429.2 mill. km); in constellation Ophiuchus EVENTS: July 1 - Comet P/Kowal-Mrkos (2000 ET90) Perihelion (2.454 AU) July 3 - Moon is 6° north of Mars, 6AM EDT July 4 - Earth is at aphelion (94.5 million miles from the Sun), 10AM EDT; Comet P/1999 DN3 (Korlevic-Juric) closest approach to Earth (3.788 AU) July 5 - Partial lunar eclipse July 6 - Comet Schwassmann-Wachmann 1 closest approach to Earth (4.919 AU) July 7 - Moon is 3° south of Neptune, 10AM EDT; Minor planet (asteroid) Ceres at opposition (mag. 7.3 in constellation Sagittarius), 3PM EDT July 8 - Moon is 3° south of Uranus, 6PM EDT July 9 - Mercury at greatest western elongation (21°), 1PM EDT July 12 - Mercury is 1.9° south of Jupiter (conjunction), 6PM EDT July 13 - Saturn is 4° north of the star Aldebaran, 4AM EDT July 14 - Venus is 3° north of the star Aldebaran, 9PM EDT July 15 - Venus is 0.7° south of Saturn (conjunction), 1AM EDT July 16 - Asteroid 2000 ET70 Near-Earth Flyby (0.330 AU) July 17 - Moon is 0.6° south of Saturn, 9AM EDT; Moon is 0.3° north of Venus, 2PM EDT July 18 - Moon is 0.2° south of Jupiter, 8PM EDT July 19 - Moon is 1.0° north of Mercury, 9AM EDT; Mars is stationary, 7PM EDT; Comet Tuttle-Giacobini-Kresak closest approach to Earth (1.520 AU); Comet Brooks 2 perihelion (1.835 AU) July 20 - Asteroid 2000 WN63 Near-Earth Flyby (0.324 AU) July 22 - Asteroid 17511 (1992 QN) Near-Earth Flyby (0.296 AU) July 23 - Asteroid 1995 OO Near-Earth Flyby (0.339 AU) July 26 - Asteroid 2000 PH5 Near-Earth Flyby (0.012 AU) July 27 - Mercury is 6° south of the star Pollux, 11AM EDT July 28 - Peak of Southern Delta Aquarid meteor shower July 29 - Comet C/2000 CT54 (LINEAR) closest approach to Earth (2.606 AU); Asteroid 1997 AQ18 Near-Earth Flyby (0.381 AU) July 30 - Neptune is at opposition, 8AM EDT; Moon is 6° north of Mars, 10AM EDT; July 30 - Asteroid 1999 YA Near-Mars Flyby (0.067 AU) ================================================== METEOR SHOWERS by James M. Thomas ================================================== Delta Aquarid Meteor Shower This minor shower peaks on July 27/28 and has a maximum of 30-40 meteors per hour. The orbit of the meteor material is small, highly eccentric, with its perihelion very close to the Sun. The radiant of the shower is near the star delta Aquarii (Scheat) in the constellation Aquarius. There are also two showers that peak in August with activity beginning in late July: Alpha-Capricornid Meteor Shower This shower is caused by Periodic Comet Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova. Meteors from this shower may be visible from July 15 through Aug. 25 with the peak on Aug. 2/3. The meteor hourly rate may be about 8. The meteors will appear to originate from a point in the constellation of Capricornus (RA 20 hrs 36 min, Dec -10°). Perseid Meteor Shower This shower is caused by Periodic Comet Swift-Tuttle, discovered on July 16, 1862 by Lewis Swift and then independently discovered three days later by Horace Tuttle. Meteors from this shower may be visible from July 25 through Aug. 21 with the peak on Aug.11/12. The meteor hourly rate may be about 75. The meteors will appear to originate from a point in the constellation of Perseus (RA 03 hrs 04 min, Dec +58°). Observing Meteors Meteors are best viewed from a dark-sky location. Observers in for the duration of the evening, or at least for several hours, should bring along a few things: a sleeping bag or blankets for warmth, a recliner or lawn chair, a hot beverage to help cut the chill, and binoculars to view the smoke trails of just-past meteors. ================================================== THIS MONTH IN HISTORY by James M. Thomas ================================================== July 24, 1950 - A U.S. Army team from the Ordnance Proving Grounds at White Sands, New Mexico, conducted the first rocket launch from Cape Canaveral, Florida. The rocket was called Bumper 8, a modified German V-2 missile with a WAC (Without Any Control) Corporal missile for a second stage. It achieved an altitude of 16 kilometers (10 miles). For the launch, Army technicians employed a painter's scaffold as a gantry to service the rocket before launch, and the control center was a converted tarpaper bathhouse surrounded by sandbags. July 21, 1961 - A Redstone rocket launched U.S. astronaut Virgil I. "Guss" Grissom in the Mercury 4 spacecraft, Libert Bell 7. This was the second U.S. sub-orbital space flight, and very similar to the flight of Alan B. Shepard Jr. a month earlier. It lasted 15 minutes, with a trajectory that took Grissom over the Atlantic Ocean where the spacecraft parachuted into the water. Grissom was recovered by helicopter from the ocean after leaving the spacecraft. Unfortunately, his spacecraft, Liberty Bell 7, sank and was lost until its recovery by a Discovery Channel-sponsored expedition early in 1999. (40th Anniversary) July 28, 1964 - The U.S. spacecraft Ranger 7 was launched. Ranger 7 became the first U.S. spacecraft to impact on the Moon. It returned a series of photos and other data. July 14, 1965 - The U.S. spacecraft Mariner 4 (launched November 28, 1964) reached the planet Mars and flew by on the far side of the planet. Mariner 4 transmitted back 22 televsion pictures of the cratered Martian surface from distance as close as 9,846 kilometers (6,118 miles). July 18, 1966 - John Young and Michael Collins were launched into Earth orbit aboard Gemini 10. They performed the first U.S. docking maneuver, using an Agena target vehicle. They returned safely to Earth on July 21. (35th Anniversary) July 16, 1969 - Neil Armstrong, Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin and Michael Collins were launched in Apollo 11. Armstrong and Aldrin, aboard the Lunar Module Eagle, landed on the lunar surface on July 20. Armstrong, and then Aldrin, became the first men to walk on the moon. They spent a total of 21 hours, 36 minutes and 21 seconds on the lunar surface, and collected 48.5 pounds of soil and rock samples. They returned to the lunar orbit, docked with Collins in the Command-Service module, and returned safely to Earth on July 24. July 15, 1975 - Aleksei A. Leonov and Valery N. Kubasov were launched in Soyuz 19. That same day Vance Brand, Thomas P. Stafford and Donald K. "Deke" Slayton were launched in an Apollo spacecraft . Both launches were part of a U.S.-U.S.S.R. joint flight. The spacecraft docked on July 17. The crews conducted experiments, shared meals, and held a joint news conference. Soyuz 19 returned to Earth on July 21 and the Apollo crew returned on July 24. July 20, 1976 - The Viking 1 spacecraft landed on Mars. Originally scheduled for a July 4th landing, in time for the U.S. bicentennial, the craft performed scientific experiments and transmitted images back to Earth for 6-1/2 years. (25th Anniversary) July 4, 1996 - The Mars Pathfinder spacecraft, launched Dec. 4, 1996, landed on the Martian surface at 1:08pm EST. The following day the Lander was renamed Carl Sagan Memorial Station. On July 6th the Sojourner rover was released to begin its exploration of the Martian surface. The mission performed measurements of the Martian climate, soil composition, and send back thousands of surface images. ================================================== PUBLICATION INFORMATION ================================================== Martian Chronicles is published monthly by the Museum Astronomical Resource Society (also known as the MARS Astronomy Club) to provide club news and other items of interest to its members. MARS is sponsored by the Museum of Science and Industry (MOSI), Tampa, Florida. Annual club membership dues are $12.00, which may be paid to any officer at club-sponsored events or mailed to the "Membership Renewal Address" listed below. Make checks payable to Frances Ferguson, our club treasurer. Newsletters are available to nonmembers by requesting a complimentary trial issue. Please send all inquiries, comments and newsletter contributions to the address below. The deadline for submitted contributions is the 15th of the month prior to the next issue. Contributions may be delayed in publication due to available space. NEWSLETTER EDITION DETAILS Martian Chronicles, July 2001, Vol. 17, No. 7 Editor: Jimmy Thomas Contributors: Craig MacDougal Circulation for this issue: Total: 98+ Membership - mail: 39, on-line: 8 Courtesy - 10, on-line: E-mail: 63 Membership Renewal Address: M.A.R.S. c/o Frances Ferguson 1522 W. River Lane Tampa, FL 33603 ================================================== CLUB INFORMATION ================================================== MUSEUM ASTRONOMICAL RESOURCE SOCIETY President - Jimmy Thomas, 813-888-7187, MARSAstro@aol.com Treasurer - Frances Ferguson, 813-238-8299, faf2@juno.com Secretary - Mark Dillenbeck, 813-685-3458, MDStarman@aol.com MOSI Contact - Craig MacDougal, 813-933-9617, MACDOUC@prodigy.net Current Membership: 52 Mailing address: 8712 Cobbler Place, Tampa, FL 33615 Web site: http://members.aol.com/MARSAstro E-mail: MARSAstro@aol.com ================================================== END MARTIAN CHRONICLES, PART 2 OF 2 ==================================================
Math Forum: Hipparchus (Chameleon Graphing: Plane History) Later he spent time in Alexandria, near the famous library, and on theisland of rhodes. Today hipparchus is most famous as an astronomer. http://mathforum.org/cgraph/history/hipparchus.html
Extractions: Hipparchus Hipparchus was born around 190 BC in a town called Nicaea, in what is now Turkey. Later he spent time in Alexandria, near the famous library, and on the island of Rhodes. Today Hipparchus is most famous as an astronomer. He made many measurements and maps of the sky. He also studied trigonometry and was the first Greek philosopher to divide the circle into 360 degrees. Hipparchus wrote many books about the things he studied. One of his books was called Against the Geography of Eratosthenes. In this book, Hipparchus criticized Eratosthenes ' grid system. Hipparchus thought Eratosthenes' grid was arbitrary: the reference lines were set down without any consideration of the shape of the earth. Hipparchus used his knowledge of trigonometry and angles to suggest a different system. He measured distances in degrees north and south of the equator , and east and west of a reference line through Rhodes. Except for the fact that his reference line was through Rhodes, Greece, and not through Greenwich, England, Hipparchus' system was just like the system of latitude and longitude we use today.
Telescopes And Observatories Using these instruments, hipparchus at rhodes (150 BC) produced the first starcatalog, measured precession and developed the magnitude system of stellar http://zebu.uoregon.edu/~js/ast222/lectures/lec01.html
Extractions: Astronomical Instruments The elegant rings and bands of an armillary sphere (below) symbolize the astronomy of the past. The armillary sphere takes its name from the Latin armilla , meaning a bracelet or metal ring. With the Earth located at the center, the rings trace out what an observer sees in the night sky without a telescope. The outer band, that supports the device, shows the observers horizon and the meridian. Inside these bands is a cagelike assembly of rings that rotate to display the durinal motion of the stars. The zodiac is represented by a broad band marked with the 12 signs. Locating stars and measuring their positions precisely is no simple task. One of the earliest astronomical instruments is the quadrant, shown below, which measures a stars altitude above the horizon. A quadrant acquires its name by its ability to measure within a quarter circle. Using spherical trigonometry, the zenith distance could then be used to calculate a stars celestial longitude and latitude. Quadrants made of metal allowed finer intervals to be ruled for more precise measurements. The astrolabe was a sophisticated time-telling instrument of late antiquity. It was an all-in-one tool for calculating the position of the Sun (thus, local time) and various stars. The typical astrolabe has a rotating cutaway disk, called the rete, that represents the heavens as they revolve around us. Labeled points represent stars, the solid band is the zodiac. A plate, or tympan, is fixed beneath the rete and is inscribed with altitude and azimuth coordinates for the particular latitude where the astrolabe is used. Since the astrolabe displays the coordinates of various bright stars, it can also be used to determine the time at night when the Sun is not visible. Astrolabes were of particular interest to the ancient Muslim culture since it provided the direction to Mecca for daily prayers.
A Disgraceful Injustice That Must Be Corrected Following the spirit of the times, the descendants of famed Greek philosopher hipparchusof rhodes (also known as hipparchus of Nicaea) today took out full http://www.crhc.uiuc.edu/~steve/humor/disgrace.html
Extractions: Disassociated Press Following the spirit of the times, the descendants of famed Greek philosopher Hipparchus of Rhodes (also known as Hipparchus of Nicaea) today took out full page ads in the New York Noise decrying the disservice done their ancestor by the 1921 Nobel Committee, which deliberately overlooked Hipparchus' contribution in awarding the prize for general relativity. A straightforward Google search on Hipparchus reveals countless pages crediting him with the discovery of the orbital precession of the planets. Comparing his own ecliptic data with those of competing Babylonian scientists, Hipparchus was able to conclude that the Sun moved from year to year relative to the stars. This key contribution allowed later scientists such as Copernicus and Newton to develop their basic theories about the laws of the Universe, which dominated scientific thought for centuries, but was also a critical element in the eventual divergence from Newton's traditionalist viewpoint to the more accurate model proposed by Einstein. In fact, the major success of this model, known today as Einstein's theory of general relativity, was its ability to predict the observation made by Hipparchus over 2,000 years earlier. The Committee craftily worded the award to discount the importance of general relativity: "for his services to Theoretical Physics, and especially for his discovery of the law of the photoelectric effect." Time has shown, however, that while the fields of photonics and electronics have gone their separate ways, relativity has remained general, with no strings attached.
Hipparchus - Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia hipparchus is believed to have died on the island of rhodes, where he spent mostof his later life Ptolemy attributes observations to him from rhodes in the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hipparchus
Extractions: For the Athenian tyrant, see Hipparchus (son of Pisistratus) Hipparchus Greek ) (circa 190 BC - circa 120 BC ) was a Greek astronomer geographer , and mathematician . The ESA 's Hipparcos Space Astrometry Mission was named after him. Hipparchus was born in Nicaea (now in Turkey) and probably died on the island of Rhodes . He is known to have been active at least from 147 BC to 127 BC . Hipparchus is considered the greatest astronomical observer, and by some the greatest astronomer altogether, of antiquity. He was the first Greek to develop quantitative and accurate models for the motion of the Sun and Moon. For this he made use of the observations and knowledge accumulated over centuries by the Chaldeans from Babylonia . He was also the first to compile a trigonometric table, which allowed him to solve any triangle. With his solar and lunar theories and his numerical trigonometry, he was probably the first to develop a reliable method to predict solar eclipses . His other achievements include the discovery of precession , the compilation of the first star catalogue , and probably the invention of the astrolabe Claudius Ptolemaeus three centuries later depended much on Hipparchus. However, his synthesis of astronomy superseded Hipparchus's work: although Hipparchus wrote at least 14 books, only his commentary on the popular astronomical poem by
Rhodes - Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia shared masters with Alexandria the Athenian rhetorician Aeschines who formed aschool at rhodes; Apollonius of rhodes, the astronomers hipparchus and Geminus http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhodes
Extractions: Rhodes is a Greek island in the southeastern Aegean Sea off the coast of Turkey , approximately midway between the Greek mainland and the island of Cyprus . Historically, it was known for its Colossus of Rhodes , one of the Seven Wonders of the World . The medieval city is a World Heritage Site edit The island was inhabited in the Neolithic period, although little remains of this culture. In the 16th century BC the Minoans came to Rhodes, and later Greek mythography recalled a Rhodian race they called the Telchines , and associated Rhodes with Danaus . In the 15th century the Achaeans invaded. It was, however, in the 11th century that the island started to flourish, with the coming of the Dorians . It was the Dorians who later built the three important cities of Lindos Ialysos and Kameiros , which together with Kos Cnidus and Halicarnassus (on the mainland) made up the so-called Dorian Hexapolis Invasions by the Persians eventually overran the island, but after their defeat by the forces from
Hipparchus This poem has survived and we have its text. Third, there was commentary on Aratusby Attalus of rhodes, written shortly before the time of hipparchus. http://www.stetson.edu/~efriedma/periodictable/html/Hs.html
Extractions: BC BC Little is known of Hipparchus's life, but he is known to have been born in Nicaea in Bithynia. Only one work by Hipparchus has survived, and this is certainly not one of his major works. Most of the information which we have about the work of Hipparchus comes from Ptolemy. Even if he did not invent it, Hipparchus is the first person whose systematic use of trigonometry we have documentary evidence. Hipparchus produced a table of chords, an early example of a trigonometric table. He did this by using the supplementary angle theorem, half angle formulas, and linear interpolation. Hipparchus was not only the founder of trigonometry but also the man who transformed Greek astronomy from a purely theoretical into a practical predictive science. He also introduced the division of a circle into 360 degrees into Greece. Hipparchus calculated the length of the year to within 6.5 minutes and discovered the precession of the equinoxes. We believe that Hipparchus's star catalogue contained about 850 stars, probably not listed in a systematic coordinate system but using various different ways to designate the position of a star. The work we have of his
Hipparchus ....................... places in the East as diverse as rhodes and Alexandria. Unfortunately little ofhis writings have survived; most of what we know about hipparchus comes from http://www.geocities.com/wcsscience/hipparchus/page.html
Extractions: Hipparchus was a Greek astronomer and mathematician who was born in 170 BC, and who has many astounding accomplishments to his name. He prepared the ancient worlds most accurate star map and catalogue of stars visible to the naked eye. He discovered the precession of the Earth. He made careful observations of the moon, enabling him to calculate the moons distance and size very accurately. Hipparchus was the first person to assign a scale of magnitude to indicate the apparent brightness of stars. Little is known of Hipparchus's life, but he is known to have been born in Nicaea in Bithynia, in what is now the country Turkey. He made his observations from places in the East as diverse as Rhodes and Alexandria. Unfortunately little of his writings have survived; most of what we know about Hipparchus comes from the Almagest, written by Ptolemy.
Hipparchus (c. 190-120 BC) hipparchus (c. 190 c. 120 BC). hipparchus or Hipparchos of Nicaeadid his observations from rhodes between 146 and 127 BC. He was http://www.seds.org/messier/xtra/Bios/hipparchus.html
Extractions: Hipparchus or Hipparchos of Nicaea did his observations from Rhodes between 146 and 127 BC. He was the first astronomer who compiled a catalog of 850 stars; this work was perhaps triggered by the observation of a "New Star" (Nova) in the constellation Scorpius in 134 BC (according to Roman historian Pliny). He included two "nebulous objects" in his catalog, the Praesepe star cluster (M44, NGC 2632) and the Double Star Cluster in Perseus, h+chi Persei (NGC 869+884) By comparing his observations with earlier observers, in particular Timocharis and Aristyllus of Alexandria (c. 280 B.C.), Hipparchus discovered the precession of equinoxes. To remarkable acuracy, he obtained measurements of the value of precession, the length of the year, and (from eclipse observations) the distance of the Moon. Hipparchus is commemorated by the naming of Moon Crater Hipparchus (5.1S, 5.2E, 138 km diameter, officially named in 1935), Mars Crater Hipparchus (44.8S, 151.4W, 93 km, in 1973), asteroid (4000) Hipparchus (discovered January 4, 1989 by S. Ueda and H. Kaneda in Kushiro, provisionally named 1989 AV and, on various pre-discovery sightings, 1963 XA, 1975 TW4, 1977 FZ2, 1978 NG8, 1979 WU4, 1984 YX5 and 1987 SD18), as well as ESA's astrometric satellite Hipparcos. Links
Star Catalogs A list of important historical star catalogs follows 300 BC Timocharis of Alexandria130 BC hipparchus (of rhodes) 120 AD Ptolemy (83161 AD) compiled his http://www.seds.org/~spider/spider/Misc/star_cats.html
Extractions: .. Under Construction ! Please be patient ! .. Catalogs of stars are listed below. Also available: Deepsky Catalogs and Observing Lists It is unknown when people first started to compile lists of stars. What we know is that the ancient Greeks recorded their observations and measurements, and thus were compiling early star catalogs. One of the earliest known compilation was created by Timocharis of Alexandria about 300 B.C.: this was later used by Hipparchus (among others, e.g. by Eratosthenes, of Cyrene, ca. 276-194 BC). Early discoveries involving star catalogs include the precession of the equinoxes , a consequence of the precession of Earth's axis in roughly 26,000 years. Throughout history, stars have been assigned proper names besides their listing in catalogs. Nowadays, the scientific community has agreed to recognize certain naming conventions, regulated by The International Astronomical Union (IAU) . More information on Naming Stars is available ( Note: There is no way to get a star officially named for profit!)
Hipparchus, Greece, Ancient History He was born in Nicea (today s Turkey), but lived and worked on rhodes and wasto influence the famous astronomer Ptolemy. hipparchus made very accurate http://www.in2greece.com/english/historymyth/history/ancient/hipparchus.htm
Rhodes, Greece, Greek Islands The astronomer hipparchus worked here in the 2nd century BC. It was probablyduring the Classic period that the Colossus of rhodes was built. http://www.in2greece.com/english/places/summer/islands/rhodes.htm
Extractions: Evia Rhodes Introduction What to See Beaches Food ... Phonenumbers Introduction This is one of the best known Greek islands and holidaymakers have been coming here for many decades. It is a beautiful island, but the many years of tourism has definitely taken its toll. Everywhere in Lindos and Rhodes town you will see bars, discos, and restaurants with food from all over the world. On the one hand this might take away a bit of the "Greekness" of the island, but on the other hand you have everything you want here. Struggling to find somewhere to exchange money or trying to communicate through bodylanguage on a small island might be charming, but sometimes it is wonderful to have all the facilities, especially if you are travelling with children, or just want to have a fun holiday by the sea. Many locals are involved with tourism in one way or the other, but there is also a lot of farmers on the island. They grow grapes and keep goats. Because it is a large island, many also have "ordinary" occupations: civil servants, shopowners, office clerks etc. There is also a large military base on the island.
Hipparchus, Greek Astronomer made his observations chiefly on the island of rhodes. Ptolemy s geocentric theoryof the universe was based largely on the conclusions of hipparchus, a record http://www.infoplease.com/ce5/CE023973.html
Extractions: Hipparchus Hipparchus, fl. 2d cent. B.C. , Greek astronomer, b. Nicaea, Bithynia. He is the first systematic astronomer of whom there are records. He made his observations chiefly on the island of Rhodes. Ptolemy's geocentric theory of the universe was based largely on the conclusions of Hipparchus, a record of whose researches is preserved in the Almagest of Ptolemy. In it Hipparchus is credited with the discovery of the precession of the equinoxes, the eccentricity of the sun's apparent orbit, and certain inequalities of the motions of the moon. He determined the lengths of the seasons and accurately measured the year. He calculated the sizes of the sun and moon using eclipses. He also made the first known comprehensive chart of the heavens giving the positions of at least 850 stars, and he divided them into brightness classes, a system of magnitudes later expanded by Ptolemy. Hipparchus suggested a method of determining longitude by observing the parallax of the moon in eclipse. He is believed to have been the first to make systematic use of trigonometry, and he computed a table of chords roughly equivalent to trigonometrical sines. Only one of his works, a commentary on the work of Aratus and Eudoxus, survives.
Extractions: 1901-ais Antikythera saloje (á pietryèius nuo Kythera salos link Kretos) akvalangistai beveik 200 m. gylyje atrado senovinio laivo (corbita) liekanas, kurias iðtyræ archeologai rado keletà bronzos ir marmuro statulø bei kitø radiniø. Galima tik ásivaizduoti, kaip iðniræs graikø nardytojas Elias Stadiatos, nusiëmæs ðalmà, kapitonui Kondos suburbuliavo kaþkà panaðaus á "daugybë nuogø negyvø moterø..." Tarp radiniø ir 2000 m. senumo laikrodiná mechanizmà. Dël sunkumø [ vienas nardytojas þuvo ], "kasinëjimai" buvo 1901-øjø rugsëjá nutraukti. Bronzos statulos keliavo á meno galerijas, juvelyriniai dirbiniai - parodoms [sako, nedidelës skulptûrëlës netrukus buvo parduotos turguje Aleksandrijoje - toks jau tas gyvenimas], o kiti radiniai buvo perduoti Atënø muziejui. Medinës dalys iðdþiûvo ir greitai suiro - tuo metu "konservacija" rûpinosi dar maþai. Apie radiná yra Derek J. de Sola Price, anglø fiziko ir istoriko, straipsnis 1959 m. birþelio "Scientific American" (daugiausia iliustracijø ðiame puslapyje pateikiama bûtent ið ðio straipsnio, po 15 m. Price iðspausdino dar iðsamesná ðio radinio tyrinëjimà). Price dar 1951-ais nuvyko á Atënus, ir vëliau tæsë tyrinëjimus, nepaisydamas, kad mokslinë visuomenë jo teiginius priëmë be ypatingo entuziazmo [ buvo profesorius, kuris sakë, kad tikriausiai Viduramþiais kaþkas netyèia iðmetë prietaisà toje vietoje ]. 1971 m. Oak Ridge nac. laboratorija paskelbë straipsná apie aukðtos energijos gama spinduliavimo panaudojimà tiriant metaliniø objektø vidø. Price netrukus gavo Graikijos Atominës energijos komsijos sutikimà ir padarë nuotraukas.
Hipparchus Biography hipparchus was born in Nicaea in Bithynia, but spent much of his lifein rhodes. He is generally considered to be one of the most http://www.hps.cam.ac.uk/starry/hipparchus.html
Extractions: Personalities Tour (Next) Previous Hipparchus Tour (Next) Hipparchus Pages General Pages Home Index The Greek astronomer Hipparchus (second century B.C) is credited with introducing numerical data from observations into geometric models and discovering the precession of the equinoxes. Little of his work survives, but Ptolemy considered him his most important predecessor. An image of Hipparchus from the title page of William Cunningham's Cosmographicall Glasse Large image (105K). Very large image (full title page) (2.3M). Hipparchus was born in Nicaea in Bithynia, but spent much of his life in Rhodes. He is generally considered to be one of the most influential astronomers of antiquity, yet very little information available about him survives; his only extant work is his commentary on the astronomical poem of Aratus (third century B.C.), the Commentary on the Phainomena of Eudoxus and Aratus . Other works by Hipparchus (now lost) included an astronomical calendar , books on optics and arithmetic, a treatise entitled On Objects Carried Down by their Weight , geographical and astrological writings, and a catalogue of his own work. The
Astronomy hipparchus Ptolemy hipparchus worked on the island of rhodes from 161 to 126 BC(obviously an original rhodes scholar but in a different class to Bob Hawke http://jacq.istos.com.au/sundry/astro.html
Extractions: The Sumerians and ancient greeks were expert astronomers. I have not got much data on Sumerian astronomers, but suffice to say that they gave us the degree as a unit of angular measurement as they liked a sexagesimal system and 360 was almost the same as the number of days in a year. The Greeks came later but on quite a few of them I can find enough data to help me fill this page. Among them we find the following people: Hicetas of Syracuse (4th century BC) And on a saturday afternoon (it could have been a sunday) while relaxing on a lounge chair in his backyard, he decided that the reason the moon was showing only 1/2 a circle at the first quarter (or was it the last ?) was obviously because the sun was making a right angle triangle between sun, moon, and Aristarchus himself. He immediately set out to measure the angle between the moon and the sun, and using his trigonometric tables (yes they sort of already existed back then) he concluded that the tangent of 87 degrees being about 20, the sun was 20 times further away from the earth than was the moon.
Science, Civilization And Society Information about the life of hipparchus is scant. It is known that he carriedout astronomical observations in Bithynia on the island of rhodes and in http://www.es.flinders.edu.au/~mattom/science society/lectures/illustrations/lec
À§´ëÇѼöÇÐÀÚ ¸ñ·Ï Dresden, Germany Died 17 March 1808 in Leipzig, Germany hipparchus, hipparchusof rhodes Born 180 BC in Nicaea (now Iznik), Bithynia (now Turkey) Died 125 http://www.mathnet.or.kr/API/?MIval=people_seek_great&init=H
[130.06] Latitude For The Observer Of Ptolemy's Catalog For centuries, researchers have claimed that substantial portions of Ptolemy sAlmagest have been taken from hipparchus in rhodes (latitude 36.2 north). http://www.aas.org/publications/baas/v31n5/aas195/937.htm
