Bronze artifact is world's oldest Astronomy computer

Thu, 08 Jun 2006 21:03:04 GMT

An ancient bronze artifact scooped out of a shipwreck in 1900 by sponge divers and kept at the Athens National Archaeological Museum has been analyzed by a team of Greek and British scientists and has been established that it is the world's oldest Astronomy computer. With over 30 bronze wheels and more than a thousand greek characters, the device "could calculate the position of certain stars, at least the Sun and Moon, and perhaps predict astronomical phenomena". The scientists have just recently managed to decipher over 95% of the inscriptions, and the new findings will be presented in November at an international congress.

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Bronze artifact is world's oldest Astronomy computer