Encyclopedia

Chang Heng

The following article is from The Great Soviet Encyclopedia (1979). It might be outdated or ideologically biased.

Chang Heng

 

Born AD. 78; died AD. 139. Chinese astronomer.

Chang Heng was one of the first to explain the cause of lunar eclipses and the phenomenon of lunar phases. He correctly described the apparent motion of celestial bodies and designed and built several astronomical instruments. His book, The Armillary Sphere, which appeared circa 120, presented in detail the theory of the “infinite sky.” The theory holds that the universe is boundless in time and space.

The Great Soviet Encyclopedia, 3rd Edition (1970-1979). © 2010 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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References in periodicals archive
The handful of articles in this section--"Problems of Translating Descriptive Binomes in the Fu" "Poetic Travelogue in the Han fu" "To Praise the Han: The Eastern Capital fu of Pan Ku and His Contemporaries," "A Journey to Morality: Chang Heng's The Rhapsody on Pondering the Mystery," "Pao Chao's 'Rhapsody on the Ruined City': Date and Circumstances of Composition"--show the author in full command of the most taxing material.
Court Culture and Literature in Early China
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