armillary sphere

The armillary sphere is one of the most important astronomical measuring tools in ancient China, and it is an astronomical instrument closely related to the theory of "Huntian". Because the structure of the armillary sphere is to simulate the celestial sphere with multiple concentric circles, its appearance is not earlier than that of the Luoxiahong era (BC 104), so the armillary sphere will not appear earlier. In the Old Biography of Ibrahimovic, it is said that Luoxiahong "turned the earth into the sky", and the "sky" here should refer to the armillary sphere, and the "round instrument" used by Zhong Cheng Geng Shouchang, a senior farmer, to "cross the moon with a round instrument" in the second year of Ganlu (52 BC) is undoubtedly also an armillary sphere. The first armillary sphere handed down from ancient times did not appear until the Eastern Jin Dynasty. This armillary sphere was made by Cheng Kongting, a former historian of Zhao Dynasty, in six years (AD 323). According to Sui Shu? According to Tian Wenzhi, it has a two-layer structure. The outer layer consists of horizontal single ring, equatorial single ring and meridian double ring. The inner layer consists of a right ascension double ring with a diameter of eight feet. Kong Ting's design has been used until the Tang Dynasty. In the middle, only Houlan at the end of Wei Dynasty made a cross groove on the base to adjust the level of the musical instrument in the 4th year of Yongxing (4 12).

In the early Tang Dynasty, Li wrote that Kong Ting's design only had the equator and no ecliptic, and suggested rebuilding a new instrument. In the seventh year of Zhenguan (667), the armillary sphere was made, which can be said to have laid the triple structure of China armillary sphere. The Northern Song Dynasty was the dynasty that trained the most soldiers in ancient China. From the first year of Daodao (995) to the seventh year of Yuanyou (1092), four military weapons were manufactured. Astronomical instruments in the Northern Song Dynasty were finally plundered by the Jin Dynasty to Yanjing, and many of them were preserved in the Ming Dynasty and transported to Nanjing. In the fourth year of orthodoxy (1439), the Ming government copied the previous generation.

Secondary limit instrument

sextant

It was made in the 12th year of Emperor Kangxi of Qing Dynasty (1673), and can be used to measure the angular distance of any one or two celestial bodies and the angular diameter of the sun and the moon within 60 degrees.

Sanjianyi

abridged armilla

The structure of China armillary sphere has experienced a simple and complicated development process, from double to triple, from only equator to adding ecliptic and white ring. Every progress marks the progress of people's understanding of the laws of celestial motion. However, these advances have also produced some shortcomings. One is that the multi-ring overlapping structure brings difficulties to precision manufacturing, which easily leads to the non-coincidence of multi-ring centers and seriously affects the observation accuracy; The other is that the more rings, the larger the sky area covered, which affects the observation of some celestial bodies; Third, the structure of the instrument is complex and the operation is difficult.

Shen Kuo in the Northern Song Dynasty created a new type of armillary sphere because of its complicated operation in the Tang Dynasty. The main feature of the new armillary sphere is to simplify the structure, such as canceling the white ring and reducing the cross-sectional area of some parts, making it light and easy to use. Secondly, by adjusting the positions of the ecliptic, equator and horizon to make them into flat rings, so as to reduce their obstruction to the line of sight, the simple instrument designed and manufactured by Guo Shoujing in Yuan Dynasty can be said to echo Shen Kuo's work of simplifying the structure of the armillary sphere.

The simple instrument is mainly composed of equatorial theodolite and horizon theodolite. In addition, there is a horizontal groove and an active scheme on the base to calibrate the level and direction of the instrument. In addition, the north pole of the equatorial theodolite is also equipped with a polar ring to correct the polar axis orientation of the instrument.

Jian Yi was first made in the 13th to 16th year of Yuan Dynasty (1276- 1279) and was installed on the platform of Yuan Tai History Museum together with it. In the fourth year of Ming Dynasty (A.D. 1439), the original simple instrument and upright instrument were copied, and they were still kept in the Observatory in Beijing until the early Qing Dynasty, but in the forty-fifth year of Kangxi (17 15), Stepf (1655-1725).

Four-station warping machine

Altazimuth

Because the calendar bureau in the late Ming Dynasty was established at the time of the war with the late Jin Dynasty, the funds were greatly limited. Most astronomical instruments made in the late Ming Dynasty were made of wood and then covered with copper. During the reign of Kangxi in Qing Dynasty, ferdinand verbiest presided over Qin Tian Jian. From the eighth to twelfth year of Kangxi (1669- 1673), six new astronomical instruments were made of copper.

Line 5

sundial

It was made between two and seven years in the Ming Dynasty (1437- 1442AD), and can be used to determine the length of the Tropic of Cancer and the 24 solar terms.

Six quadrants

quadrant

It was made in the 12th year of Emperor Kangxi of Qing Dynasty (1673) and can be used to determine the horizon height or zenith distance of celestial bodies.

Seven equatorial theodolite

Equatorial armillary sphere

It was written by Ferdinand ferdinand verbiest in the 12th year of Qing Emperor Kangxi (1673). It is mainly used to measure solar time, right ascension difference and the right latitude of celestial bodies. Because Ferdinand ferdinand verbiest simplified the functions of many instruments, his astronomical instruments can be calibrated with each other. In Ferdinand ferdinand verbiest's GV Instrument Records, there is a conversion table among the three coordinates of ecliptic, equator and horizon.

Eight-level theodolite

Azimuth theodolite

After Ferdinand ferdinand verbiest, the Qing government successively produced two large-scale instruments, one of which was made in the fifty-fourth year of Emperor Kangxi of Qing Dynasty (17 15), which was mainly used to measure the orientation and horizon height of celestial bodies. Because the horizon and quadrant are not suitable for observing the same celestial body at the same time, in the fifty-fourth year of Kangxi (17 15), a leveling theodolite was made, with which the horizon coordinates of a pair of celestial bodies can be observed simultaneously. This instrument, designed and manufactured by Ji Lian, is basically a combination of Ferdinand Webster's horizon and horizon.

Nine ecliptic theodolite

signs of the zodiac

It was made in the 12th year of Qing Emperor Kangxi (1673), and it was also made by Ferdinand ferdinand verbiest. It is mainly used to measure the longitude difference, latitude and solar terms of celestial bodies.

Century heng Chen fu yi

New Armilla

Following Ferdinand ferdinand verbiest (1623- 1688), the Qing government cast two large-scale instruments, one of which was the horizon theodolite (/made by Bernard Kieran Stump in the fifty-fourth year of Kangxi (1655- 1720) Basically, it is a combination of Ferdinand ferdinand verbiest's instrument of horizon longitude and horizon latitude, and the other instrument was made by Ignace kogler and others in the 9th year of Qing Qianlong (1744), which is mainly used to measure the apparent solar time and the declination and declination of celestial bodies. It took ten years to build this instrument (1744- 1754), which was the last astronomical instrument cast in Qing dynasty.

Eleven celestial bodies

celestial globe

The celestial globe is an astronomical instrument designed and manufactured by Ferdinand Verbist. It was made in the 12th year of Emperor Kangxi of Qing Dynasty (1673), and it is mainly used to determine the time and orientation of celestial bodies, and to find the horizon height and orientation of celestial bodies at any time. At that time, the six astronomical instruments cast by Ferdinand ferdinand verbiest were equatorial theodolite, ecliptic theodolite, horizon, horizon, time limit instrument and this instrument. These instruments are designed according to the European classical style, which breaks the complex structure of traditional armymen with overlapping rings and concentrated coordinates. Each instrument is only used to observe one coordinate, which simplifies the structure, and is not only convenient to operate, but also does not block too many sky areas.

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