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CE 206, Chinese astronomers were able to predict solar eclipses by analyzing the motion
of the Moon.
Astronomy flourished in Mesopotamia, the plain between the two great rivers Tigris and
Euphrates, in the dawn of civilization. Like the Chinese and Egyptian astronomers, the
Babylonian astronomers observed the motions of the Sun, Moon and planets carefully
and kept records of the celestial events. They are also credited with remarkable
contributions to ancient astronomy.
Three famous solar eclipse records were made in Mesopotamia; one was that of the
eclipse of 3 May 1375 BCE, which was visible in the city of Ugarit (located in present
Syrian Arab Republic), a total eclipse "that turned day into night" was found to be the
eclipse of 31 July 1036 BCE, and an Assyrian record of the solar eclipse of 15 June 763
BCE that was observed in the city of Nineva.
The ancient Greek astronomers have made outstanding contributions to astronomy and
their works remained influential till the Renaissance. Eratosthenes (276-194 BCE)
estimated the circumference of the Earth with a remarkable accuracy by measuring the
angles of the shadows cast at noon in Aswan and Alexandria on the day of the summer
solstice.
Aristarchus (ca. 320-250 BCE) made a rough estimate of the lunar diameter and proposed
the first known heliocentric model of the Universe. In this model, the Sun, not the Earth,
is at the center of the Universe. Hipparchus (190-120 BCE) calculated the first
measurement of precession and compiled the first star catalog.
The ancient Greek astronomers had also great knowledge of eclipses.
A fragment of a lost poem by Archilochus (ca. 680645 BCE), who was a Greek poet and
soldier, seems to clearly depict a total solar eclipse:
Nothing there is beyond hope,
nothing that can be sworn impossible,
nothing wonderful, since Zeus,
father of the Olympians,
made night from mid-day,
hiding the light of the shining Sun,
light is deflected in the gravitational fields of celestial objects, i.e., the gravitational field
of a star like the Sun acts as if it were a huge, cosmic lens that refracts light.
Eddington photographed the stars near the Sun during the totality of the eclipse.
According to the theory of relativity, the stars in the vicinity of the Sun will appear
slightly shifted from their original positions because of the deflection of their light due to
the gravitational field of the Sun.
This effect can be observed from Earth only during the totality phase of a total solar
eclipse, as the stars cannot be seen in broad daylight. Eddington's measurements
confirmed Einstein's work and were regarded as a conclusive proof that gravity bends
light rays.
From its orbit in space, the Hubble Space Telescope has made incredible images of
cosmic "gravitational lenses", in which massive galaxies bend the light of more distant
objects; thanks to Einstein and Eddington!
Fig (1)
An extragalactic gravitational lens imaged by the Hubble Space Telescope
Fig (2)
Natural lenses in space
Eclipses of the Sun are awe-inspiring phenomena. It is no wonder that in many early
cultures they were believed to be the end of the world or omens. The word eclipse is of
Greek origin meaning "abandonment".
In China, India, southeastern Asia and in Peru there were beliefs that dragons or demons
attack the Sun during eclipses. The ancient Egyptian myth of the snake Apep that attacks
the boat of the Sun god is believed now to refer to solar eclipses.
The Chinese and the Incas tried to frighten these monsters away but the Indians made a
different attempt by immersing themselves in water. They performed this religious ritual
to help the Sun struggle against the dragon.
Even today, in some countries, it is still traditional to bang pots, chant or shoot into the air
when an eclipse happens.
Some superstitions that believe solar eclipses emit harmful radiation, or cause sickness,
still persist.
Muslims pray five times daily, but during eclipses they specially perform the "eclipse
prayer". This is one of the traditions of Prophet Mohammad (PBUH). The purpose of this
prayer is to remember the might and gifts of Allah the Creator.