was an
analog computer from 150–100 BC designed to calculate the positions of astronomical objects. Greek astronomy is
astronomy written in the
Greek language in
classical antiquity. Greek astronomy is understood to include the
ancient Greek,
Hellenistic,
Greco-Roman, and
Late Antiquity eras. It is not limited
geographically to
Greece or to ethnic
Greeks, as the Greek language had become the language of scholarship throughout the
Hellenistic world following the conquests of
Alexander. This phase of Greek astronomy is also known as
Hellenistic astronomy, while the pre-Hellenistic phase is known as
Classical Greek astronomy. During the Hellenistic and Roman periods, much of
the Greek and non-Greek
astronomers working in the Greek tradition studied at the
Musaeum and the
Library of Alexandria in
Ptolemaic Egypt. The development of astronomy by the Greek and Hellenistic astronomers is considered by historians to be a major phase in the
history of astronomy. Greek astronomy is characterized from the start by seeking a rational, physical explanation for celestial phenomena. Most of the constellations of the northern hemisphere derive from Greek astronomy, as are the names of all planets and moons and all stars in the
Bayer designation. It was influenced by
Babylonian and, to a lesser extent,
Egyptian astronomy; in turn, it influenced
Indian,
Arabic-Islamic and
Western European astronomy. Many of the proper names for individual stars within the constellations are
Arabic (modern designation is the
Bayer designation by the German
Johann Bayer from 1603, it is a stellar designation in which a specific star is identified by a Greek letter, followed by the genitive form of its parent constellation's Latin name. The original list of Bayer designations contained 1,564 stars), before the Arabian names, there were Greek names of the stars. The Greek astronomer
Hipparchus 190 BC – c. 120 BC work, were later made into several scientific texts by the Greek
Claudius Ptolemy’s called
the Almagest, which contained the original
Greek and Latin names for stars, It contain a star catalogue of 1022 stars, described by their positions in the constellations, In the 9th century it was adopted by the
Arabs and translated from the original Greek and Latin into Arabic. For example, the Arabs translated
Opisthen (Οπισθεν "after" or "following"Greek) or
Opiso (Οπισω "to follow after" Greek), one of the original Greek names for the brightest star in Taurus, as
Aldebaran (الدبران), which means "the Follower" in Arabic, because the star always follows behind the
Pleiades as both move across the sky. In all, there are three major names for the brightest star in Taurus; the proper name Aldebaran and the scientific names, Alpha Taurind and 87 Tauri. Any of these three names can be used for the brightest star in Taurus but present day astronomers prefer to use the latter two scientific names. Due to their enormous popularity, a remnant of bright stars retained their original Greek or Latin names, surviving the mass invasion of Arabic names. Examples include
Sirius (Greek for "searing" or "scorching"),
Arcturus (Greek for "Guardian of the Bear"),
Capella (Latin for "Little She-goat"), and
Spica (Latin for "Ear of Grain"). Examples of Chinese and Hindu names include
Koo She (Chinese for "Bow and Arrow") and
Ashlesha (Vedic-Hindu for "The Embracing One"). There are also contemporary proper names given to some stars, many of which refer to accomplished astronomers, deceased astronauts and English titles. For example,
Gamma Velorum is named
Regor, which is "Roger" spelled backwards; the name honors
Astronaut Roger B. Chaffee, who died in the
Apollo 1 tragedy. Other contemporary names include
The Persian (
Alpha Indi) and
The Head of Hydrus (
Alpha Hydri), ''Herschel's Garnet Star'' (
Mu Cephei),
Barnard's Star, etc. ==Humanism and Renaissance==