Ptolemy Contribution Kate

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York University *

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1745

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Astronomy

Date

Oct 30, 2023

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Independent Research Project #1 NATS1745A, Summer 2022 Prof. Rafiee Ptolemy’s Contribution to Astronomy! Human Goodman (them/they), Student ID 123456789 Aristarchus. Credit...Wikipedia Table of Contents Introduction ....................................................................................................................................... 2 Discoveries/Observation .................................................................................................................... 2 What we know/basic facts .................................................................................................................. 2 What we don’t know/Open questions ................................................................................................ 3 Conclusion ......................................................................................................................................... 3 Bibliography ....................................................................................................................................... 4

Introduction Because of Claudius Ptolemy's significant contributions to European and Islamic science, his work was regarded as the finest of its kind until the late 1500s. Thanks to his good observations during the time of his work, he was able to advance his academic standing as an astronomy expert, which gave him some amount of authority. Due to his mathematical education in geometry, Ptolemy had an edge when it came to interpreting and analyzing the movements of planets like the moon and the sun. Ptolemy is revered in the field of astronomy for his ability to chart the cosmos and is regarded as one of its founders. This essay will concentrate on Ptolemy's geocentric universe model in order to assess the applicability of his discoveries to both contemporary astronomy and upcoming cosmological research. When examining Ptolemy's proposal for a geocentric model of the cosmos, one must take into account why it lost credibility after more than 1500 years of relevance. Background History Aristotle's geocentric theory had been taken and promoted by Ptolemy, who of course expanded upon it and developed its applications. According to the geocentric universe hypothesis, the earth was at the centre of the universe, while the planets and the rest of the cosmos circled around it. () Using his own geometric models, Ptolemy added to the theory by describing the capacity to forecast the movements of planets like the moon and sun. (1) Using the deferent and epicycle system, his geometric models described how planets rotated in bigger rotations known as the deferent and smaller rotations known as epicycles. These concepts were put out by Ptolemy in his book Algamest, which was supported by a group of 13 other volumes. In these books, Ptolemy goes on to discuss his views on the sun, moon, eclipses, and other celestial bodies. (3) One of the first astronomers to employ the astrolabe, which he used to determine the locations of several planets relative to the earth in the cosmos, was Ptolemy. The astrolabe, a device that can measure the longitude and latitude of locations in space using astronomy, is a crucial component of Ptolemy's discoveries. (1) What we know/basic facts about his method Following Aristotle and Theon, Ptolemy was able to advance the geocentric model of the cosmos by adding his own discoveries concerning planetary retrograde motion, which he supported with both empirical and mathematical data. Ptolemy's work was so influential and significant to the 2

field of astronomy that scientists continued to utilize his charts, data, and observations for centuries after his death. It also played a crucial role in making the first predictions about the positions of the planets in the cosmos and about their particular eclipses. (3) Many of Ptolemy's discoveries were later verified to be accurate by extensive observation, which was crucial in granting him credit for his work. Many other ideas of the cosmos have emerged as a result of Ptolemy's work, most notably Copernicus's claim that Ptolemy's geocentric theory was incorrect. This led to the development of the heliocentric hypothesis, which holds that the sun is the centre of the universe. It was subsequently discovered that Ptolemy had several critical errors in his calculations on the circular motion of planets, casting doubt on the accuracy of Ptolemy's work in comparison to the recently proposed heliocentric theory. When Copernicus was able to provide the accurate calculations, Ptolemy's work was subsequently proven to be inaccurate. (5) What we don’t know/errors and mistakes Ptolemy proposed the planets went into retrograde motion periodically in their eclipses in order for his calculations to work, yet it was later discovered that there were numerous errors in them. His own hypothesis was the reason for the errors, for he was working on a theory that put the earth at the centre of the universe. (4) Ptolemy miscalculated the size of the planet because he did not include some nations, such as America, when he surveyed the globe using Roman knowledge. The major problem with Ptolemy's geocentric theory was the fact that his estimates of planetary motion were inaccurate, despite the fact that they supported his own hypothesis. Later research revealed that the planets' sizes, speeds, and other characteristics were considerably different from what Ptolemy had first hypothesized. Conclusion With the help of his heliocentric universe theory, Copernicus went on to disparage the work of Ptolemy. Ptolemy made inaccurate estimations of the planetary movements in order to make them fit his theories. Despite all of this, Ptolemy's work was crucial in paving the way for later astronomers to study the cosmos and planetary motion since it was the first model to consider the planets' retrograde motion. Ptolemy's contributions advanced astronomical observation greatly and helped subsequent generations of astronomers master their craft. 3

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Bibliography 1. Owen Gingerich, On Ptolemy as the Greatest Astronomer of Antiquity: A History of Ancient Mathematical Astronomy. O. Neugebauer. Springer-Verlag, New York, 1975. Three volumes. xxiv, 1458 pp., illus. $124.70. Studies in the History of Mathematics and Physical Sciences, 1..Science193,476-477(1976).DOI: 10.1126/science.193.4252.476 2. Sheynin, H. Y. (2015). Claudius Ptolemy? Pseudo-Ptolemy? The Main Source of Moses Almosnino’s Treatise on Astrolabe. Journal for the History of Astronomy, 46(3), 343–350. https://doi.org/10.1177/0021828615595181 3. Mundt, C. S. (1927). NOTABLE ASTRONOMERS OF PAST AGES. II — Ptolemy. Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific, 39(228), 122–126. http://www.jstor.org/stable/40693509 4. Moesgaard, K. P. (1980). Book Review: Ptolemy’s Failings, the Crime of Claudius Ptolemy. Journal for the History of Astronomy, 11(2), 133–135. https://doi.org/10.1177/002182868001100207 5. Eric Schulman, Caroline V. Cox; Misconceptions about astronomical magnitudes. Am. J. Phys. 1 October 1997; 65 (10): 1003–1007. https://doi.org/10.1119/1.18714 4