Appreciation of Shi gan xing Jing, the earliest astronomical work in the world

Shi gan xing Jing: the earliest astronomical work in the world

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During the Warring States Period, the Chu people Gander and wei ren Shen Shi each wrote an astronomical work. Later generations put these two works together, collectively known as The Shi Gan Sutra. This is the earliest astronomical work in the world.

Gan De, also known as Gan Gong, was a famous astrologer in Chu during the Warring States Period. He lived in the 4th century BC and wrote eight volumes of astronomical astrology.

Stone God, also known as Stone God House, was an astronomer and astrologer of Wei in the middle of the Warring States Period. He lived in the 4th century BC and wrote eight books on astronomy.

From the Warring States Period to the Qin and Han Dynasties, Stone God and Gande had great influence and formed two schools. During the Han Dynasty, two works were published respectively. After the Han and Wei dynasties, they began to merge. After the Song Dynasty, the book was titled "Shi Gan Jing Jing" and "Han Gan Gong and Shi Shenzhu", which was first recorded in Chao's "County Zhai Du Zhi" and has been passed down to this day.

This work observed the running laws of five planets, recorded the names of 800 stars and determined the orientation of 12 1 star, which was a pioneering work at that time.

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During the Warring States period, the vassal states attached great importance to the observation of astronomical phenomena, and all had officials who mastered astronomy. These astrological officials studied the astronomical phenomena, calculated the movements of the stars, the sun and the moon, observed the climate change, set the orientation, divided the four seasons, set the solar terms, remembered the time and compiled the emperor's chronology.

At that time, there was an astrologer named Shi Shen in Wei State. After long-term observation, he measured the positions of more than 100 stars and learned the laws of the five planets. For example, he calculated that Jupiter's circle period is 400 days, which is only 1. 12 days worse than the exact value of 398.88 days; He calculated that the circular period of Mercury is 136 days, which is 2 1 day worse than the actual value15 days, and basically mastered the running law of Mercury. He also discovered the retrograde phenomenon of Mars; Wait a minute.

In addition, he observed the prominence for the first time, leaving the earliest record about sunspots; The earliest classification of comets; It is clear for the first time that solar eclipse and lunar eclipse are phenomena that celestial bodies block each other.

These studies and discoveries were recorded in his magnum opus Astronomy, and later generations, together with another astronomer at that time, Tian Wen Xing Zhan, called Shi Gan Xing Jing. In order to commemorate the contribution of Stone God to astronomy, people named a crater on the back of the moon after him.

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UFO Records in Ancient China

During the Jiayou period of the Northern Song Dynasty, a big pearl was discovered in Yangzhou. It first appeared in the swamp of Tianchang County, and was later transferred to Pianshe Lake. After passing through more than ten places, local residents often see it. Someone set up a study on the lake, and one night he suddenly saw this big bead, which was very close. I saw the light coming out of the middle, like a golden thread passing through. After a while, the shell of the beads was opened, which was half the size of a cushion. The white light in the shell was as bright as day, and the beads inside were as bright as fists. This big ball moves very fast. There is a place called Liangfan Town, where Dazhu travels. When pedestrians arrive at this place, they often stop to watch.

This record comes from Meng Qian Bi Tan written by Shen Kuo in the Northern Song Dynasty. Shen Kuo is a scientist who pays attention to on-the-spot investigation. His record is very reliable. He was surprised by the UFO that appeared on the lake and named it "the Pearl of the Moon".