Lecture

Epicyclic Curves in Astronomy

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In course

MATH-126: Geometry for architects II

Ce cours traite des 3 sujets suivants : la perspective, la géométrie descriptive, et une initiation à la géométrie projective. ...

Description

This lecture explores the concept of epicyclic curves, which have been a fundamental tool in astronomy since ancient times. It delves into the historical development of epicyclic models, from the Greeks to Kepler, and the complexities astronomers faced in modeling planetary motions. The lecture also discusses Ptolemy's Almagest, Copernicus' heliocentric system, and the significance of commensurability in periodicity. The presentation focuses on the basic mechanism of epicyclic curves composed of a single deferent circle and a single epicycle, as seen in Dürer's 'spider' instrument.

Instructor

Bernard Cache

Official source

Ontological neighbourhood

History

Fields of history: History of science

Related concepts (32)

Ptolemy

Claudius Ptolemy (ˈtɒləmi; Πτολεμαῖος, ; Claudius Ptolemaeus; 100-170 AD) was an Alexandrian mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, geographer, and music theorist, who wrote about a dozen scientific treatises, three of which were of importance to later Byzantine, Islamic, and Western European science. The first is the astronomical treatise now known as the Almagest, although it was originally entitled the Mathēmatikē Syntaxis or Mathematical Treatise, and later known as The Greatest Treatise.

History of astronomy

Astronomy is the oldest of the natural sciences, dating back to antiquity, with its origins in the religious, mythological, cosmological, calendrical, and astrological beliefs and practices of prehistory: vestiges of these are still found in astrology, a discipline long interwoven with public and governmental astronomy. It was not completely separated in Europe (see astrology and astronomy) during the Copernican Revolution starting in 1543. In some cultures, astronomical data was used for astrological prognostication.

Indian astronomy

Indian astronomy refers to astronomy practiced in Indian subcontinent. It has a long history stretching from pre-historic to modern times. Some of the earliest roots of Indian astronomy can be dated to the period of Indus Valley civilisation or earlier. Astronomy later developed as a discipline of Vedanga, or one of the "auxiliary disciplines" associated with the study of the Vedas dating 1500 BCE or older. The oldest known text is the Vedanga Jyotisha, dated to 1400–1200 BCE (with the extant form possibly from 700 to 600 BCE).

Heliocentrism

Heliocentrism (also known as the Heliocentric model) is the astronomical model in which the Earth and planets revolve around the Sun at the center of the universe. Historically, heliocentrism was opposed to geocentrism, which placed the Earth at the center. The notion that the Earth revolves around the Sun had been proposed as early as the third century BC by Aristarchus of Samos, who had been influenced by a concept presented by Philolaus of Croton (c. 470 – 385 BC).

Babylonian astronomy

Babylonian astronomy was the study or recording of celestial objects during the early history of Mesopotamia. Babylonian astronomy seemed to have focused on a select group of stars and constellations known as Ziqpu stars. These constellations may have been collected from various earlier sources. The earliest catalogue, Three Stars Each, mentions stars of the Akkadian Empire, of Amurru, of Elam and others. A numbering system based on sixty was used, a sexagesimal system.

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