Astronomical Diaries and Related Texts from Babylonia

This volume presents tablets with lunar and planetary data, extending from the 8th to the 1st century B.C. By far the largest part of these data are observations, in all likelihood excerpted from „Astronomical Diaries“ of the kind published in vols. I to III. The first part of this volume deals with the moon. Most interesting are eclipse reports and tables of eclipses, both lunar and solar, which are arranged so that the periodic recurrence of eclipses can be seen. The eclipse texts are analysed in an Appendix by J. M. Steele. For the moon the volume further contains tables of intervals between the risings and settings of sun and moon, both around new moon and full moon; some of these intervals are computed, not observed. The second part of the book is concerned with observations of the planets. Many of these texts extend over many years. They too were used by the Babylonian astronomers to investigate periodically recurring phenomena in order to find ways to compute them in advance.