Hipparchus’ Star Catalogue

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jeidsath
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Hipparchus’ Star Catalogue

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New evidence for Hipparchus’ Star Catalogue revealed by multispectral imaging
Abstract

New evidence for ancient Greek astronomer Hipparchus’ lost Star Catalogue has come to light thanks to multispectral imaging of a palimpsest manuscript and subsequent decipherment and interpretation. This new evidence is the most authoritative to date and allows major progress in the reconstruction of Hipparchus’ Star Catalogue. In particular, it confirms that the Star Catalogue was originally composed in equatorial coordinates. It also confirms that Ptolemy’s Star Catalogue was not based solely on data from Hipparchus’ Catalogue. Finally, the available numerical evidence is consistent with an accuracy within 1° of the real stellar coordinates, which would make Hipparchus’ Catalogue significantly more accurate than his successor Claudius Ptolemy’s.
Image

Seems to have been noticed when the folios were donated to Museum of the Bible in 2012.

Two quotes from the article which I found most interesting:
It is also remarkable that the coordinates from CCR and Aratus Latinus are not consistent with the hypothesis that the data in Ptolemy’s Star Catalogue were arrived at simply by applying a precession constant to Hipparchus’ data.
Considering the equatorial coordinate format, it seems safe to assume nevertheless that, if his observations were conducted with an armillary sphere, this must have been an equatorial armillary sphere, and not an ecliptic armillary sphere like Ptolemy’s; however, it is also possible that the measurements were taken with a dioptra, which may have been easier to operate.
“One might get one’s Greek from the very lips of Homer and Plato." "In which case they would certainly plough you for the Little-go. The German scholars have improved Greek so much.”

Joel Eidsath -- jeidsath@gmail.com

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