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The telescope and observation in late Ming China
Villas in Astronomy, Vol. 31, pp. 8 4 9 - 8 5 1 , 1 9 8 8
0083=6656188 $0.004- .SO Copyrisht © 1988 Science Press & Pergamon Journals Ltd.
THE TELESCOPE AND OBSERVATION IN LATE MING CHINA Keizo
Hashimoto
Kansai University9 Japan The first reference to the telescope L~eh ( ~ I ~
) by Emanuel Diaz (Yang Ma-no;
explains Galileo's astronomical Nuncius published in 1610. Then, Yu-han;
~
in Chinese is in the T'ien Wen ~
) of 1615, which
discoveries appeared in his Sidereus in 1618, Johannes Terrentius
(Teng
) arrived in China, and brought with him a telescope.
The set was shown to the throne later in 1634. Adam Schall yon Bell (T'ang So-wang;
~
), with Li Tzu-pai ( ~ 8
Chinese treatise on the telescope,
), completed a
Yuan C~in~ Shuo ( ~
), several
years later in 1626 (Needham 1959). This explained the principle, the structure and the usage of the telescope,
as well as various
astronomical
In addition to
discoveries with the instrument.
Galileo's discoveries,
it contains some other discoveries,
example,the discovery that 5 Ursa Majoris In the west,
for
(Mizar) is a double star.
the fact was later noticed by Giovanni B. Riccioli
in
about 1645 (see Grant 1859). The telescope,
as I have already made clear (Hashimoto 1986)
was made use of when the astronomical
reform was inaugurated
under the supervision of Hsu Kuang-ch'i As far as documents are concerned,
( ~
in 1629
).
the earliest opportunity
for
telescopic observation was the solar eclipse that occurred on 1631 October 25 (D'Elia 1960). This eclipse was a partial one. Two sets of telescopes were used at the Astronomical Bureau. One was put in the dark room (mi-shi; ~
), and the Other outside on the terrace.
The result of the measurement
of the magnitude of the partiality
was 0.15 of the diameter of the solar disk, which was regarded as agreeing with the revised calculation of 0.17 (Chiao). According to the Chiao Shih Li Chih in the following year, the telescope was covered with wrapping paper in case the eclipse was observed outside in the open air (Chiao
1632). The projection pla6e
was put in parallel with the lenses, even though we can find a long 849
850
Keizo Hashimoto
description of Kepler's method of elliptic projection
just below in
the other part of the Treatise. The text also suggests but a Keplerian the instrument
that the instrument was not a Galilean
telescope, which had been brought to China.
If so,
for the observation of the eclipse might have been
the helioscope with the Kep]erian telescope which had been used by Christopher Scheiner several years
later after the publication of
the Dioptrice by Kepler in 1611. Next we should like to examine the observation of planetary motions with the telescope. When Jupiter was retrograding and approaching the Ssu-kuai
erh ( , @ ~
; 1 Gem)
in 1633 December,
the change
of the separation of Jupiter from the star was being measured day by day. According point
to our estimate,
Jupiter was to come to the closest
from the star, I Gem, during the night on the 1633 December 8
(Julian calendar),
and the separation between them was to be less
than 6 minutes, which does not contradict with the description the fext from the Wu Wei Li Chih ( ~
in
; Treatise on the Plane-
tary Motions). Here we should like to show another example of telescopic observation.
It also concerns
vicinity of the Chi-shih-ch'i of the Kuei-shu
(~
planet
( ~P~
; M44, Praesepe)
in the middle
in Beijing pursued the motion of Jupiter
in 1634 to June in the next year, during which time the
retrograded
from 1634 October 10 to 1635 March I0. Jupiter
passed three times in the vicinity of Praesepe According
to the document
in this interval.
(Wu Wei Li Chin),
"Jupiter was in the
same degree and same minute with the Chi-shih-ch'i, december as to right ascenssion, to longitude,
now in the
; 8 , 4' F, g Cancri) of the 28 determinative
stars system. Astronomers from October
the motion of Jupiter,
respectively.
on the 22nd
and on the 24th December,
1634, as
And the distance between Jupiter and the
Praesepe was measured as 54/100 degree
(=32') and it was regarded as
the intrusion (fan, ~ ) of Jupiter i~to the cluster. Then,
Jupiter was
in the same degree and same minute with the
Praesepe on the 7th June as to right ascenssion,
and on the 8£h June,
Late Ming China
851
1635, as to longitude, respectively. The distance was 38/1OO degree (=23'), and it was regarded as intrusion (fan; ~ )." Before these observations, Jupiter was intensively observed.
It
was approaching Praesepe at that time. As for the phenomenon,
there
remains a detailed memorial prepared by Li T'ien-ching ( ~
),
which was presented to the throne on the 3rd November in 1634. His memorial
first of all gives us imformation about the telescope then
available to the astronomers in Beijing (Chih Li Yuan Ch'i).
0083=6656188 $0.004- .SO Copyrisht © 1988 Science Press & Pergamon Journals Ltd.
THE TELESCOPE AND OBSERVATION IN LATE MING CHINA Keizo
Hashimoto
Kansai University9 Japan The first reference to the telescope L~eh ( ~ I ~
) by Emanuel Diaz (Yang Ma-no;
explains Galileo's astronomical Nuncius published in 1610. Then, Yu-han;
~
in Chinese is in the T'ien Wen ~
) of 1615, which
discoveries appeared in his Sidereus in 1618, Johannes Terrentius
(Teng
) arrived in China, and brought with him a telescope.
The set was shown to the throne later in 1634. Adam Schall yon Bell (T'ang So-wang;
~
), with Li Tzu-pai ( ~ 8
Chinese treatise on the telescope,
), completed a
Yuan C~in~ Shuo ( ~
), several
years later in 1626 (Needham 1959). This explained the principle, the structure and the usage of the telescope,
as well as various
astronomical
In addition to
discoveries with the instrument.
Galileo's discoveries,
it contains some other discoveries,
example,the discovery that 5 Ursa Majoris In the west,
for
(Mizar) is a double star.
the fact was later noticed by Giovanni B. Riccioli
in
about 1645 (see Grant 1859). The telescope,
as I have already made clear (Hashimoto 1986)
was made use of when the astronomical
reform was inaugurated
under the supervision of Hsu Kuang-ch'i As far as documents are concerned,
( ~
in 1629
).
the earliest opportunity
for
telescopic observation was the solar eclipse that occurred on 1631 October 25 (D'Elia 1960). This eclipse was a partial one. Two sets of telescopes were used at the Astronomical Bureau. One was put in the dark room (mi-shi; ~
), and the Other outside on the terrace.
The result of the measurement
of the magnitude of the partiality
was 0.15 of the diameter of the solar disk, which was regarded as agreeing with the revised calculation of 0.17 (Chiao). According to the Chiao Shih Li Chih in the following year, the telescope was covered with wrapping paper in case the eclipse was observed outside in the open air (Chiao
1632). The projection pla6e
was put in parallel with the lenses, even though we can find a long 849
850
Keizo Hashimoto
description of Kepler's method of elliptic projection
just below in
the other part of the Treatise. The text also suggests but a Keplerian the instrument
that the instrument was not a Galilean
telescope, which had been brought to China.
If so,
for the observation of the eclipse might have been
the helioscope with the Kep]erian telescope which had been used by Christopher Scheiner several years
later after the publication of
the Dioptrice by Kepler in 1611. Next we should like to examine the observation of planetary motions with the telescope. When Jupiter was retrograding and approaching the Ssu-kuai
erh ( , @ ~
; 1 Gem)
in 1633 December,
the change
of the separation of Jupiter from the star was being measured day by day. According point
to our estimate,
Jupiter was to come to the closest
from the star, I Gem, during the night on the 1633 December 8
(Julian calendar),
and the separation between them was to be less
than 6 minutes, which does not contradict with the description the fext from the Wu Wei Li Chih ( ~
in
; Treatise on the Plane-
tary Motions). Here we should like to show another example of telescopic observation.
It also concerns
vicinity of the Chi-shih-ch'i of the Kuei-shu
(~
planet
( ~P~
; M44, Praesepe)
in the middle
in Beijing pursued the motion of Jupiter
in 1634 to June in the next year, during which time the
retrograded
from 1634 October 10 to 1635 March I0. Jupiter
passed three times in the vicinity of Praesepe According
to the document
in this interval.
(Wu Wei Li Chin),
"Jupiter was in the
same degree and same minute with the Chi-shih-ch'i, december as to right ascenssion, to longitude,
now in the
; 8 , 4' F, g Cancri) of the 28 determinative
stars system. Astronomers from October
the motion of Jupiter,
respectively.
on the 22nd
and on the 24th December,
1634, as
And the distance between Jupiter and the
Praesepe was measured as 54/100 degree
(=32') and it was regarded as
the intrusion (fan, ~ ) of Jupiter i~to the cluster. Then,
Jupiter was
in the same degree and same minute with the
Praesepe on the 7th June as to right ascenssion,
and on the 8£h June,
Late Ming China
851
1635, as to longitude, respectively. The distance was 38/1OO degree (=23'), and it was regarded as intrusion (fan; ~ )." Before these observations, Jupiter was intensively observed.
It
was approaching Praesepe at that time. As for the phenomenon,
there
remains a detailed memorial prepared by Li T'ien-ching ( ~
),
which was presented to the throne on the 3rd November in 1634. His memorial
first of all gives us imformation about the telescope then
available to the astronomers in Beijing (Chih Li Yuan Ch'i).