EXPLORING THE ASTRONOMY OF ANCIENT EGYPT WITH SIMULATIONS Ⅰ: THE SUN, MOON, AND MILKY WAY

摘要

The four simulations described above provide insights into possible ancient astronomical practices. In Simulation Ⅰ, the myth of Nut and the annual rebirth of Ra was illustrated using the annual motion of the Milky Way across the sky. The simulation can also be used to examine Wells' contention that this myth originated about 4500 BC. Egyptian observations of solar and lunar cycles were probably based on simple YES/NO observations. In Simulation Ⅱ, the counting of whole days between winter solstices, and the averaging of results over several years, would have led to an estimate of 365 days for a solar year. Simulations Ⅲ and Ⅳ illustrate how Egyptian observations of the new Moon, combined with records of feast days over several decades, could have led to the discovery of a 25-year lunar cycle, within a 365-day calendar system. If you have access to a planetarium program such as Starry Night, you are encouraged to work though these simulations. Take your time. Repeat a simulation several times and experiment with variations. Try to visualize yourself observing the crisp desert sky in ancient Egypt while pondering the cycles within cycles that were created at the beginning of time. Part Ⅱ includes simulations of the heliacal rise of Sirius, and of measuring the hours of the night with the "decans."