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What is Hipparchus best known for?
120 BC) was a Greek astronomer, geographer, and mathematician. He is considered the founder of trigonometry, but is most famous for his incidental discovery of precession of the equinoxes. Hipparchus is considered the greatest ancient astronomical observer and, by some, the greatest overall astronomer of antiquity.
In what field does Hipparchus contribute?
Hipparchus, also spelled Hipparchos, (born, Nicaea, Bithynia [now Iznik, Turkey]—died after 127 bce, Rhodes?), Greek astronomer and mathematician who made fundamental contributions to the advancement of astronomy as a mathematical science and to the foundations of trigonometry.
What did Ptolemy discover?
Ptolemy made contributions to astronomy, mathematics, geography, musical theory, and optics. He compiled a star catalog and the earliest surviving table of a trigonometric function and established mathematically that an object and its mirror image must make equal angles to a mirror.
How did Hipparchus discover trigonometry?
Hipparchus produced a table of chords, an early example of a trigonometric table. He did this by using the supplementary angle theorem, half angle formulas, and linear interpolation. Hipparchus calculated the length of the year to within 6.5 minutes and discovered the precession of the equinoxes.
What was the greatest achievement of Hipparchus?
Hipparchus was one of antiquity’s greatest scientists. A Greek mathematician and astronomer, he measured the earth-moon distance accurately, founded the mathematical discipline of trigonometry, and his combinatorics work was unequalled until 1870.
What did Ptolemy discover about light?
Defending the theory that vision is due to a flow emanating from the eye, Ptolemy analyzed the reflection of light on flat and spherical mirrors, and its refraction when it crosses the surface between two transparent media.
What does Ptolemy mean?
1 : of or relating to the second century geographer and astronomer Ptolemy of Alexandria and especially to his belief that the earth is at the center of the universe with the sun, moon, and planets revolving around it the Ptolemaic system.
Who invented 0?
mathematician Brahmagupta
The first modern equivalent of numeral zero comes from a Hindu astronomer and mathematician Brahmagupta in 628. His symbol to depict the numeral was a dot underneath a number. He also wrote standard rules for reaching zero through addition and subtraction and the results of operations that include the digit.
Who was Hipparchus and what did he do?
Over the course of his life, Hipparchus would be a very accomplished astronomer and mathematician. He is believed to have been the founder of trigonometry and, although he made the discovery somewhat by accident, he is credited for revealing the precession of the equinoxes.
What did Hipparchus contribute to the solar theory?
Ptolemy credited Hipparchus (mid-2nd century bce) with essential elements of his solar theory, as well as parts of his lunar theory, while denying that Hipparchus constructed planetary models.
How did Hipparchus contribute to the field of trigonometry?
Trigonometry is an area of mathematics that is faced on the area of angles. Hipparchus made an incredible number of discoveries in the realm of trigonometry and the understanding of triangles was increased dramatically.
What kind of observations did Hipparchus make on Ptolemy?
Ptolemy cites more than 20 observations made there by Hipparchus on specific dates from 147 to 127, as well as three earlier observations from 162 to 158 that may be attributed to him.