Article ID: CBB000772410

Celestial Measurement in Babylonian Astronomy (2007)

unapi

Late Babylonian astronomical texts contain frequent measurements of the positions of the Moon and planets. These measurements include distances of the Moon or a planet from a reference star and measurements of the position of celestial bodies within a sign of the zodiac. In this paper, I investigate the relationship between these two measurement systems and propose a new understanding of the concepts of celestial longitude and latitude in Babylonian astronomy. I argue that the Babylonians did not define latitude using the ecliptic but instead considered the Moon and each planet to move up or down within its own band as it travelled around the zodiac.

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Description Looks at two kinds of measurements recorded in these texts: distances of the Moon or a planet from a reference star and measurements of the position of celestial bodies within a sign of the zodiac


Citation URI
https://data.isiscb.org/isis/citation/CBB000772410/

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Authors & Contributors
Steele, John M.
Britton, John P.
Jones, Alexander
Huber, Peter J.
Gullberg, Steven
Wang, Peng-yun
Concepts
Astronomy
Moon
Solar system; planets
Mathematics
Tablets; papyri
Sun
Time Periods
Ancient
Places
Middle and Near East
Mesopotamia
Babylon (extinct city)
Assyria
Greece
Sumer
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