The Manga Guide to the Universe

In China, Where Astronomy Was Originay Developed 19

Ancient Babylonia’s View

of the Universe

The Babylonians thought that the Moon and

stars were affixed to an enormous arched

ceiling called the celestial sphere. The celes-

tial sphere was supported by Mt. Ararat,

and the Sun moved from east to west

across its inner surface.

In China, Where Astronomy Was

Originally Developed

In contrast to these imaginary universes,

people in ancient China and Greece tried

to develop models of the universe scien-

tifically. It was in China that astronomy

was first developed.

In China, several cosmologies were

conceived approximately 2,000 to 2,400

years ago, based ...