中国古代对行星视运动规律的认识

Understanding of the Law of Planetary Apparent Motion by Ancient Chinese

五星动态表是中国古代天文学家计算行星位置所必需的基本表格,其精密与否取决于天文学家对行星在一个会合周期中视运动规律的掌握程度。至迟从战国开始,天文学家通过对行星视运动的长期观测,逐渐掌握了行星的顺逆、迟疾和留等规律,并对造成这些现象的原因进行了深入的思考。梳理了西方近代天文学传入中国之前,中国古代天文学家对行星视运动规律的认识进程,这有助于我们审视行星运动理论的历史。

Tables of planetary grades of motion in a synodic period are basic tables for astronomers to calculate the apparent position of planets, whether they are accurate or not depends on degrees of knowledge of the laws of planetary apparent motion in a synodic period. From the period of Warring States on, from the long,term continuous observation to the apparent motion of planets, astronomers gradually grasped the laws of planetary apparent motion, such as direct motion, retrogradation, stationary interval and speed of each grade, and discussed the cause that lead to these different motion. In this paper, I discuss the knowledge of ancient Chinese astronomers about the laws of planetary apparent motion before western modem astronomy was introduced into China, which has the guiding meaning to understand the history of theory of planetary movement.