Conon of Samos (ca. 280 BC - ca. 220 BC) was a
Greek astronomer and mathematician.
Life and work
Conon was born on Samos, Ionia, and possibly died in
Alexandria, Ptolemaic Egypt, where he was
court astronomer to Ptolemy III Euergetes. He named the constellation
Coma Berenices ("Berenice's Hair") after Ptolemy's wife Berenice II. She sacrificed her hair in exchange for her husband's safe return from the Third
Syrian War, which began in 246 BCE. When the lock of hair disappeared, Conon explained that the
goddess had shown her favor by placing it in the sky. Not all Greek astronomers accepted the designation. In Ptolemy's Almagest, Coma Berenices is not listed as a distinct
constellation. However, Ptolemy does attribute several seasonal indications (parapegma)
to Conon. Conon was a friend of the mathematician Archimedes who he probably met at
Alexandria.
Pappus states that the spiral of Archimedes was
discovered by Conon. Apollonius of Perga reported that Conon worked on
conic sections, and his work became the basis for Apollonius' fourth book of the
Conics. Apollonius further reports that Conon sent some of his work to Thrasydaeus, but
that it was incorrect. Since this work has not survived it is impossible to assess the accuracy of Apollonius' comment.
In astronomy, Conon wrote in seven books his De astrologia, including observations on solar eclipses. Ptolemy further
seventeen "signs of the seasons" to Conon, although this may not have been given in De astrologia. Seneca writes that
"Conon was a careful observer and that he "recorded solar eclipses observed by the Egyptians"[1], although the accuracy of this statement is doubted. The Roman Catullus writes that Conon "discerned all the lights of the vast universe, and disclosed the risings and
settings of the stars, how the fiery brightness of the sun is darkened, and how the stars retreat at fixed times."[2]
Citations and footnotes
- ^ O Neugebauer (1975)
- ^ Ivor Bulmer-Thomas
(1970-1990)
References
- Ivor Bulmer-Thomas. "Conon of Samos." Dictionary of Scientific Biography
3:391.
- O Neugebauer, A history of ancient mathematical astronomy (New York, 1975).
External links
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
