Moon Nodes
The reign of Nebuchadnezzar II has been fixed in history by Ptolemy's Canon of kings, VAT4956 and the eclipse tablet LBAT 1420. The principal factor in these is the lunar eclipse. Whether or not a lunar eclipse occurs depends on the position of the lunar node in relation to the Sun and Earth. (see ecliptic limits)
The accuracy of each of these eclipses can be checked with astronomical software, the results are exactly as one would expect. The eclipses happen almost exactly as they have been recorded. This is considered to be "positive proof" a "fact" even. This is because the moon cycle is well known by astronomers. The variations of each lunation can be calculated with very small margins of error. However, this isn't entirely true, in a readme file for Steve Moshier's aa-56.zip he says:
The true accuracy of positions calculated for prehistoric or future dates is of course unknown. The Moon's position is calculated by a modified version of the lunar theory of Chapront-Touze' and Chapront. This has a precision of 0.5 arc second relative to DE404 for all dates between 1369 B.C. and 3000 A.D. The real position of the Moon in ancient times is not actually known this accurately, due to uncertainty in the tidal acceleration of the Moon's orbit.
- Steve Moshier
The Six Millennium Catalog of Phases of the Moon by Fred Espenak (the NASA eclipse guy) shows that the moon has pretty much behaved the way it should, for a very long time. There being no anomalies in the length of lunar months etc. This means one can be confident that the generally accepted date of Nebuchadnezzar's reign is indisputable.
There is a certain amount of flexibility, with the adjustment of ΔT. This has been used to move the position of Earth to make eclipses match what was observed in ancient times.
Maybe one problem is that scholars and astronomers have put too much stock in Ptolemy's canon of kings. It has been used as a reliable source and a framework for the period for a long time. Below is a chart of the nodal period of the moon (18.61 years) over a period of 3,111 years. When the information was collated, it seemed that for no apparent reason that the node moved more than -3° (red text) on three occasions. When we took an average of 10 cycles, a pattern emerged that lasted nearly 1,000 years. Have a look at the pattern (in blue) and how it becomes truncated around the time of Nebuchadnezzar II. The reason for the lunar node moving more than -3° became apparent. If you wanted to make eclipses fit where they don't naturally, this would affect where the lunar nodes are. Since "the real position of the Moon in ancient times is not actually known this accurately" what accounts for the disruption in the nodal cycle? Why does this disruption occur at the exact period in history that is disputed?
Does this affect the reliability of the supporting evidence for VAT 4956?
| Date & Time (UTC+3) | JD | ΔT | ° Longitude | ° Latitude | ° Decimal | ° Difference | 10 cycle average | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2022-03-08 11:20:36 | 2459646.84760 | 00:01:12 | 54° 50' 02'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 54.8339 | -0.1219 | 54.6713 * |
| 2 | 2003-07-23 21:45:55 | 2452844.28190 | 00:01:05 | 57° 33' 40'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 57.5611 | -2.7272 | 55.1361 * |
| 3 | 1984-12-07 01:30:25 | 2446041.43780 | 00:00:54 | 57° 28' 13'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 57.4703 | 0.0908 | 55.6409 * |
| 4 | 1966-04-22 22:50:28 | 2439238.32670 | 00:00:37 | 55° 21' 04'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 55.3511 | 2.1192 | 55.6516 * |
| 5 | 1947-09-06 22:36:33 | 2432435.31710 | 00:00:28 | 56° 13' 30'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 56.2250 | -0.8739 | 55.6917 * |
| 6 | 1929-01-20 22:15:40 | 2425632.30250 | 00:00:24 | 58° 31' 22'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 58.5228 | -2.2978 | 56.1700 * |
| 7 | 1910-06-06 11:50:56 | 2418828.86870 | 00:00:11 | 58° 14' 32'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 58.2422 | 0.2806 | 56.5831 * |
| 8 | 1891-10-19 21:23:41 | 2412025.26640 | -0:00:06 | 56° 25' 54'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 56.4317 | 1.8106 | 56.5885 * |
| 9 | 1873-03-04 17:44:07 | 2405222.11400 | -0:00:02 | 57° 06' 03'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 57.1008 | -0.6692 | 56.6451 * |
| 10 | 1854-07-20 00:59:00 | 2398419.41600 | 00:00:08 | 59° 53' 57'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 59.8992 | -2.7983 | 57.1638 |
| 11 | 1835-12-04 05:55:31 | 2391616.62190 | 00:00:06 | 59° 18' 30'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 59.3083 | 0.5908 | 57.6113 |
| 12 | 1817-04-19 08:12:42 | 2384813.71720 | 00:00:12 | 57° 06' 15'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 57.1042 | 2.2042 | 57.5656 |
| 13 | 1798-09-02 14:56:38 | 2378010.99770 | 00:00:14 | 58° 19' 14'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 58.3206 | -1.2164 | 57.6506 |
| 14 | 1780-01-17 18:30:37 | 2371208.14630 | 00:00:17 | 60° 39' 19'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 60.6553 | -2.3347 | 58.1810 |
| 15 | 1761-06-02 08:36:46 | 2364404.73390 | 00:00:15 | 60° 07' 30'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 60.1250 | 0.5303 | 58.5710 |
| 16 | 1742-10-16 17:32:43 | 2357601.10610 | 00:00:12 | 58° 24' 11'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 58.4031 | 1.7219 | 58.5590 |
| 17 | 1724-03-01 11:44:37 | 2350797.86430 | 00:00:11 | 59° 15' 58'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 59.2661 | -0.8631 | 58.6614 |
| 18 | 1705-07-16 13:22:50 | 2343994.93250 | 00:00:09 | 61° 53' 05'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 61.8847 | -2.6186 | 59.2067 |
| 19 | 1686-11-29 12:21:31 | 2337191.88990 | 00:00:11 | 61° 03' 40'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 61.0611 | 0.8236 | 59.6028 |
| 20 | 1668-04-14 11:46:05 | 2330388.86530 | 00:00:28 | 59° 08' 40'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 59.1444 | 1.9167 | 59.5273 |
| 21 | 1649-08-29 19:48:54 | 2323586.20060 | 00:00:48 | 60° 44' 21'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 60.7392 | -1.5947 | 59.6704 |
| 22 | 1631-01-14 03:58:37 | 2316783.54070 | 00:01:22 | 62° 42' 00'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 62.7000 | -1.9608 | 60.2299 |
| 23 | 1612-05-30 00:38:05 | 2309980.40140 | 00:01:46 | 61° 46' 50'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 61.7806 | 0.9194 | 60.5759 |
| Telescope invented 1608 | ||||||||
| 24 | 1593-10-13 16:38:49 | 2303177.06860 | 00:02:03 | 60° 20' 11'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 60.3364 | 1.4442 | 60.5441 |
| 25 | 1575-02-17 14:16:36 | 2296373.96990 | 00:02:14 | 61° 30' 10'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 61.5028 | -1.1664 | 60.6818 |
| 26 | 1556-07-03 11:28:40 | 2289570.85320 | 00:02:27 | 63° 47' 36'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 63.7933 | -2.2906 | 61.2209 |
| 27 | 1537-11-17 01:46:19 | 2282767.44880 | 00:02:42 | 62° 36' 41'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 62.6114 | 1.1819 | 61.5554 |
| 28 | 1519-04-02 17:42:49 | 2275964.11310 | 00:02:59 | 61° 04' 43'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 61.0786 | 1.5328 | 61.4748 |
| 29 | 1500-08-16 21:31:05 | 2269161.27160 | 00:03:18 | 63° 17' 32'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 63.2922 | -2.2136 | 61.6979 |
| 30 | 1482-01-01 06:47:04 | 2262358.65770 | 00:03:38 | 64° 54' 36'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 64.9100 | -1.6178 | 62.2744 |
| 31 | 1463-05-18 09:23:58 | 2255555.76660 | 00:03:59 | 63° 25' 01'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 63.4169 | 1.4931 | 62.5422 |
| 32 | 1444-10-01 10:12:15 | 2248752.80020 | 00:04:22 | 62° 07' 35'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 62.1264 | 1.2906 | 62.4849 |
| 33 | 1426-02-15 14:12:07 | 2241949.96680 | 00:04:46 | 63° 41' 56'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 63.6989 | -1.5725 | 62.6767 |
| 34 | 1407-07-02 11:02:29 | 2235146.83510 | 00:05:11 | 65° 52' 16'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 65.8711 | -2.1722 | 63.2302 |
| 35 | 1388-11-14 20:56:46 | 2228343.24780 | 00:05:38 | 64° 23' 51'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 64.3975 | 1.4736 | 63.5196 |
| 36 | 1370-03-31 08:22:02 | 2221539.72360 | 00:06:07 | 63° 00' 30'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 63.0083 | 1.3892 | 63.4411 |
| 37 | 1351-08-15 07:14:42 | 2214736.67690 | 00:06:37 | 65° 35' 17'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 65.5881 | -2.5797 | 63.7388 |
| 38 | 1332-12-29 12:21:24 | 2207933.88990 | 00:07:09 | 67° 01' 16'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 67.0211 | -1.4331 | 64.3331 |
| 39 | 1314-05-15 13:53:58 | 2201130.95410 | 00:07:44 | 65° 17' 08'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 65.2856 | 1.7356 | 64.5324 |
| 40 | 1295-09-29 17:38:48 | 2194328.11030 | 00:08:21 | 64° 13' 39'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 64.2275 | 1.0581 | 64.4641 |
| 41 | 1277-02-13 02:40:04 | 2187525.48620 | 00:09:00 | 65° 57' 18'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 65.9550 | -1.7275 | 64.7179 |
| 42 | 1258-06-30 03:54:03 | 2180722.53750 | 00:09:42 | 67° 48' 48'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 67.8133 | -1.8583 | 65.2866 |
| 43 | 1239-11-13 17:10:26 | 2173919.09060 | 00:10:28 | 66° 14' 56'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 66.2489 | 1.5644 | 65.5416 |
| 44 | 1221-03-29 07:17:59 | 2167115.67920 | 00:11:17 | 65° 07' 37'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 65.1269 | 1.1219 | 65.4672 |
| 45 | 1202-08-13 04:55:41 | 2160312.58030 | 00:12:09 | 67° 45' 21'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 67.7558 | -2.6289 | 65.8031 |
| 46 | 1183-12-28 03:10:39 | 2153509.50740 | 00:13:05 | 68° 47' 22'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 68.7894 | -1.0336 | 66.3812 |
| 47 | 1165-05-12 20:54:15 | 2146706.24600 | 00:14:05 | 67° 00' 42'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 67.0117 | 1.7778 | 66.5235 |
| 48 | 1146-09-26 19:53:18 | 2139903.20370 | 00:15:09 | 66° 34' 00'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 66.5667 | 0.4450 | 66.4781 |
| 49 | 1128-02-11 05:17:39 | 2133100.59560 | 00:16:17 | 68° 29' 27'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 68.4908 | -1.9242 | 66.7986 |
| 50 | 1109-06-27 11:48:14 | 2126297.86680 | 00:17:30 | 69° 40' 50'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 69.6806 | -1.1897 | 67.3439 |
| 51 | 1090-11-11 09:03:54 | 2119494.75270 | 00:18:47 | 67° 50' 44'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 67.8456 | 1.8350 | 67.5330 |
| 52 | 1072-03-27 07:03:45 | 2112691.66930 | 00:20:10 | 67° 08' 16'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 67.1378 | 0.7078 | 67.4654 |
| 53 | 1053-08-11 07:33:16 | 2105888.68980 | 00:21:37 | 70° 00' 40'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 70.0111 | -2.8733 | 67.8416 |
| 54 | 1034-12-26 00:52:15 | 2099085.41130 | 00:23:08 | 70° 38' 13'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 70.6369 | -0.6258 | 68.3926 |
| 55 | 1016-05-10 10:56:29 | 2092281.83090 | 00:24:45 | 68° 40' 15'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 68.6708 | 1.9661 | 68.4841 |
| 56 | 0997-09-24 02:57:41 | 2085478.49840 | 00:26:27 | 68° 45' 19'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 68.7553 | -0.0844 | 68.4807 |
| 57 | 0979-02-08 08:26:21 | 2078675.72660 | 00:28:13 | 71° 00' 57'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 71.0158 | -2.2606 | 68.8811 |
| 58 | 0960-06-24 15:20:58 | 2071873.01460 | 00:30:05 | 71° 43' 18'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 71.7217 | -0.7058 | 69.3966 |
| 59 | 0941-11-08 17:23:07 | 2065070.09940 | 00:32:01 | 69° 35' 24'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 69.5900 | 2.1317 | 69.5066 |
| 60 | 0923-03-25 22:14:55 | 2058267.30200 | 00:34:03 | 69° 09' 01'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 69.1503 | 0.4397 | 69.4535 |
| 61 | 0904-08-09 03:50:40 | 2051464.53520 | 00:36:08 | 72° 13' 22'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 72.2228 | -3.0725 | 69.8913 |
| 62 | 0885-12-23 21:43:37 | 2044661.28030 | 00:38:19 | 72° 38' 25'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 72.6403 | -0.4175 | 70.4415 |
| 63 | 0867-05-09 06:52:59 | 2037857.66180 | 00:40:34 | 70° 35' 28'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 70.5911 | 2.0492 | 70.4995 |
| 64 | 0848-09-21 20:55:32 | 2031054.24690 | 00:42:53 | 70° 56' 40'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 70.9444 | -0.3533 | 70.5303 |
| 65 | 0830-02-05 21:44:37 | 2024251.28100 | 00:45:16 | 73° 11' 36'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 73.1933 | -2.2489 | 70.9825 |
| 66 | 0811-06-22 22:32:19 | 2017448.31410 | 00:47:43 | 73° 35' 22'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 73.5894 | -0.3961 | 71.4659 |
| 67 | 0792-11-05 21:16:58 | 2010645.26180 | 00:50:14 | 71° 34' 06'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 71.5683 | 2.0211 | 71.5212 |
| 68 | 0774-03-23 02:53:36 | 2003842.49560 | 00:52:48 | 71° 32' 02'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 71.5339 | 0.0344 | 71.5024 |
| 69 | 0755-08-07 12:43:49 | 1997039.90540 | 00:55:26 | 74° 26' 52'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 74.4478 | -2.9139 | 71.9882 |
| 70 | 0736-12-21 12:11:39 | 1990236.88310 | 00:58:06 | 74° 24' 51'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 74.4142 | 0.0336 | 72.5146 |
| 71 | 0718-05-07 03:50:06 | 1983433.53480 | 01:00:50 | 72° 27' 06'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 72.4517 | 1.9625 | 72.5374 |
| 72 | 0699-09-20 22:47:48 | 1976630.32490 | 01:03:36 | 73° 13' 35'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 73.2264 | -0.7747 | 72.5961 |
| 73 | 0681-02-03 21:24:33 | 1969827.26700 | 01:06:24 | 75° 18' 15'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 75.3042 | -2.0778 | 73.0674 |
| 74 | 0662-06-20 13:43:49 | 1963023.94710 | 01:09:14 | 75° 14' 34'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 75.2428 | 0.0614 | 73.4972 |
| 75 | 0643-11-04 04:08:01 | 1956220.54720 | 01:12:07 | 73° 24' 16'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 73.4044 | 1.8383 | 73.5183 |
| 76 | 0625-03-20 04:53:08 | 1949417.57860 | 01:15:01 | 74° 01' 55'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 74.0319 | -0.6275 | 73.5626 |
| 77 | 0606-08-04 14:49:02 | 1942614.99240 | 01:17:57 | 76° 51' 39'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 76.8608 | -2.8289 | 74.0918 |
| 78 | 0587-12-19 19:17:32 | 1935812.17880 | 01:20:54 | 76° 10' 24'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 76.1733 | 0.6875 | 74.5558 |
| 79 | 0569-05-04 19:07:51 | 1929009.17210 | 01:23:53 | 74° 09' 21'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 74.1558 | 2.0175 | 74.5266 |
| 80 | 0550-09-18 22:05:28 | 1922206.29550 | 01:26:53 | 75° 24' 22'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 75.4061 | -1.2503 | 74.6258 |
| 81 | 0532-02-02 22:10:27 | 1915403.29890 | 01:29:54 | 77° 33' 10'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 77.5528 | -2.1467 | 75.1359 |
| 82 | 0513-06-18 10:04:40 | 1908599.79490 | 01:32:57 | 77° 06' 09'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 77.1025 | 0.4503 | 75.5235 |
| 83 | 0494-11-01 18:58:26 | 1901796.16560 | 01:36:01 | 75° 17' 49'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 75.2969 | 1.8056 | 75.5228 |
| 84 | 0476-03-17 14:47:01 | 1894992.99100 | 01:39:03 | 76° 19' 41'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 76.3281 | -1.0311 | 75.6313 |
| 85 | 0457-08-01 20:20:46 | 1888190.22280 | 01:42:07 | 79° 08' 29'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 79.1414 | -2.8133 | 76.2050 |
| 86 | 0438-12-16 23:32:02 | 1881387.35560 | 01:45:12 | 78° 06' 29'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 78.1081 | 1.0333 | 76.6126 |
| 87 | 0420-05-02 01:51:21 | 1874584.45230 | 01:48:17 | 76° 08' 51'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 76.1475 | 1.9606 | 76.5413 |
| 88 | 0401-09-16 10:10:38 | 1867781.79900 | 01:51:22 | 77° 41' 37'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 77.6936 | -1.5461 | 76.6933 |
| 89 | 0383-01-31 14:42:28 | 1860978.98780 | 01:54:27 | 79° 41' 45'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 79.6958 | -2.0022 | 77.2473 |
| 90 | 0364-06-16 05:39:34 | 1854175.61080 | 01:57:31 | 79° 00' 20'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 79.0056 | 0.6903 | 77.6072 |
| 91 | 0345-10-30 16:51:08 | 1847372.07720 | 02:00:34 | 77° 24' 06'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 77.4017 | 1.6039 | 77.5921 |
| 92 | 0327-03-16 12:20:58 | 1840568.88960 | 02:03:36 | 78° 35' 42'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 78.5950 | -1.1933 | 77.7414 |
| 93 | 0308-07-30 12:00:39 | 1833765.87550 | 02:06:38 | 81° 04' 43'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 81.0786 | -2.4836 | 78.3195 |
| 94 | 0289-12-14 07:43:59 | 1826962.69720 | 02:09:38 | 79° 49' 59'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 79.8331 | 1.2456 | 78.6700 |
| 95 | 0271-04-30 04:57:46 | 1820159.58180 | 02:12:38 | 78° 18' 44'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 78.3122 | 1.5208 | 78.5871 |
| 96 | 0252-09-13 12:40:40 | 1813356.90320 | 02:15:37 | 80° 18' 10'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 80.3028 | -1.9906 | 78.8066 |
| 97 | 0234-01-28 21:16:30 | 1806554.26150 | 02:18:35 | 81° 49' 37'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 81.8269 | -1.5242 | 79.3745 |
| 98 | 0215-06-14 19:44:56 | 1799751.19790 | 02:21:33 | 80° 40' 01'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 80.6669 | 1.1600 | 79.6719 |
| 99 | 0196-10-28 15:17:51 | 1792948.01240 | 02:24:31 | 79° 21' 35'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 79.3597 | 1.3072 | 79.6383 |
| 100 | 0178-03-14 15:11:03 | 1786145.00770 | 02:27:28 | 80° 55' 24'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 80.9233 | -1.5636 | 79.8300 |
| 101 | 0159-07-29 11:01:58 | 1779341.83470 | 02:30:26 | 83° 05' 26'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 83.0906 | -2.1672 | 80.3989 |
| 102 | 0140-12-11 23:00:15 | 1772538.33350 | 02:33:24 | 81° 29' 42'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 81.4950 | 1.5956 | 80.6889 |
| 103 | 0122-04-27 13:00:08 | 1765734.91680 | 02:36:22 | 80° 20' 10'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 80.3361 | 1.1589 | 80.6147 |
| 104 | 0103-09-11 15:50:14 | 1758932.03490 | 02:39:21 | 82° 53' 53'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 82.8981 | -2.5619 | 80.9212 |
| 105 | 0085-01-26 00:00:25 | 1752129.37530 | 02:42:21 | 84° 06' 25'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 84.1069 | -1.2089 | 81.5006 |
| 106 | 0066-06-12 02:51:35 | 1745326.49420 | 02:45:23 | 82° 27' 19'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 82.4553 | 1.6517 | 81.7159 |
| 107 | 0047-10-27 05:52:42 | 1738523.61990 | 02:48:26 | 81° 18' 33'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 81.3092 | 1.1461 | 81.6641 |
| 108 | 0029-03-12 11:50:35 | 1731720.86850 | 02:51:30 | 83° 11' 47'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 83.1964 | -1.8872 | 81.9171 |
| 109 | 0010-07-27 08:40:55 | 1724917.73670 | 02:54:37 | 85° 12' 26'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 85.2072 | -2.0108 | 82.5018 |
| 110 | -0009-12-10 18:50:30 | 1718114.16010 | 02:57:46 | 83° 25' 50'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 83.4306 | 1.7767 | 82.7525 |
| 111 | -0027-04-25 06:37:52 | 1711310.65130 | 03:00:57 | 82° 26' 26'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 82.4406 | 0.9900 | 82.6875 |
| 112 | -0046-09-09 05:19:30 | 1704507.59690 | 03:04:11 | 85° 11' 29'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 85.1914 | -2.7508 | 83.0572 |
| 113 | -0064-01-24 08:00:02 | 1697704.70840 | 03:07:28 | 86° 09' 10'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 86.1528 | -0.9614 | 83.6388 |
| 114 | -0083-06-09 07:15:11 | 1690901.67720 | 03:10:47 | 84° 24' 45'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 84.4125 | 1.7403 | 83.7903 |
| 115 | -0102-10-24 10:45:32 | 1684098.82330 | 03:14:11 | 83° 38' 50'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 83.6472 | 0.7653 | 83.7443 |
| 116 | -0120-03-09 20:34:50 | 1677296.23250 | 03:17:37 | 85° 35' 47'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 85.5964 | -1.9492 | 84.0584 |
| 117 | -0139-07-24 22:44:39 | 1670493.32270 | 03:21:08 | 87° 07' 44'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 87.1289 | -1.5325 | 84.6404 |
| 118 | -0158-12-08 14:21:14 | 1663689.97310 | 03:24:42 | 85° 17' 07'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 85.2853 | 1.8436 | 84.8493 |
| 119 | -0176-04-23 07:03:01 | 1656886.66880 | 03:28:21 | 84° 40' 01'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 84.6669 | 0.6183 | 84.7953 |
| 120 | -0195-09-07 05:26:35 | 1650083.60180 | 03:32:03 | 87° 26' 15'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 87.4375 | -2.7706 | 85.1959 |
| 121 | -0213-01-22 01:06:33 | 1643280.42120 | 03:35:51 | 87° 56' 42'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 87.9450 | -0.5075 | 85.7464 |
| 122 | -0232-06-06 15:36:03 | 1636477.02500 | 03:39:42 | 86° 10' 22'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 86.1728 | 1.7722 | 85.8445 |
| 123 | -0251-10-21 13:12:57 | 1629673.92570 | 03:43:39 | 86° 05' 03'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 86.0842 | 0.0886 | 85.8377 |
| 124 | -0269-03-07 22:13:00 | 1622871.30070 | 03:47:41 | 88° 13' 36'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 88.2267 | -2.1425 | 86.2191 |
| 125 | -0288-07-22 04:56:47 | 1616068.58110 | 03:51:48 | 89° 04' 01'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 89.0669 | -0.8403 | 86.7611 |
| 126 | -0307-12-06 04:18:47 | 1609265.55470 | 03:56:01 | 86° 57' 25'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 86.9569 | 2.1100 | 86.8971 |
| 127 | -0325-04-22 05:16:34 | 1602462.59480 | 04:00:20 | 86° 45' 41'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 86.7614 | 0.1956 | 86.8604 |
| 128 | -0344-09-05 06:56:01 | 1595659.66390 | 04:04:45 | 89° 46' 16'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 89.7711 | -3.0097 | 87.3089 |
| 129 | -0362-01-19 22:53:49 | 1588856.32900 | 04:09:16 | 89° 55' 46'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 89.9294 | -0.1583 | 87.8352 |
| 130 | -0381-06-05 07:14:33 | 1582052.67680 | 04:13:54 | 88° 00' 10'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 88.0028 | 1.9267 | 87.8917 |
| 131 | -0400-10-18 23:00:56 | 1575249.33400 | 04:18:39 | 88° 21' 39'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 88.3608 | -0.3581 | 87.9333 |
| 132 | -0418-03-05 03:36:19 | 1568446.52520 | 04:23:31 | 90° 42' 51'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 90.7142 | -2.3533 | 88.3874 |
| 133 | -0437-07-20 08:49:16 | 1561643.74260 | 04:28:31 | 91° 08' 13'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 91.1369 | -0.4228 | 88.8927 |
| 134 | -0456-12-03 10:45:49 | 1554840.82350 | 04:33:40 | 88° 53' 15'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 88.8875 | 2.2494 | 88.9588 |
| 135 | -0474-04-19 17:07:44 | 1548038.08870 | 04:38:58 | 88° 58' 37'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 88.9769 | -0.0894 | 88.9498 |
| 136 | -0493-09-03 23:46:05 | 1541235.36530 | 04:44:26 | 92° 01' 19'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 92.0219 | -3.0450 | 89.4563 |
| 137 | -0511-01-17 18:07:10 | 1534432.13000 | 04:49:27 | 91° 57' 10'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 91.9528 | 0.0692 | 89.9754 |
| 138 | -0530-06-03 04:08:35 | 1527628.54760 | 04:54:06 | 90° 02' 58'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 90.0494 | 1.9033 | 90.0033 |
| 139 | -0549-10-17 19:58:34 | 1520825.20730 | 04:58:47 | 90° 40' 53'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 90.6814 | -0.6319 | 90.0785 |
| 140 | -0567-03-02 20:03:28 | 1514022.21070 | 05:03:30 | 92° 52' 09'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 92.8692 | -2.1878 | 90.5651 |
| 141 | -0586-07-17 17:44:42 | 1507219.11440 | 05:08:16 | 92° 57' 22'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 92.9561 | -0.0869 | 91.0246 |
| 142 | -0605-12-01 14:34:28 | 1500415.98230 | 05:13:04 | 90° 56' 55'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 90.9486 | 2.0075 | 91.0481 |
| 143 | -0623-04-16 19:55:06 | 1493613.20490 | 05:17:54 | 91° 33' 01'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 91.5503 | -0.6017 | 91.0894 |
| 144 | -0642-09-01 06:03:17 | 1486810.62730 | 05:22:46 | 94° 20' 16'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 94.3378 | -2.7875 | 91.6344 |
| 145 | -0660-01-16 06:38:53 | 1480007.65200 | 05:27:41 | 93° 43' 59'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 93.7331 | 0.6047 | 92.1101 |
| 146 | -0679-06-01 00:41:58 | 1473204.40410 | 05:32:37 | 91° 57' 17'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 91.9547 | 1.7783 | 92.1033 |
| 147 | -0698-10-15 22:27:52 | 1466401.31100 | 05:37:36 | 93° 02' 13'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 93.0369 | -1.0822 | 92.2118 |
| 148 | -0716-02-29 20:40:08 | 1459598.23620 | 05:42:37 | 95° 04' 35'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 95.0764 | -2.0394 | 92.7144 |
| 149 | -0735-07-15 10:11:45 | 1452794.79980 | 05:47:41 | 94° 41' 12'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 94.6867 | 0.3897 | 93.1150 |
| 150 | -0754-11-28 23:05:05 | 1445991.33690 | 05:52:47 | 92° 51' 30'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 92.8583 | 1.8283 | 93.1139 |
| 151 | -0772-04-13 23:08:40 | 1439188.33930 | 05:57:54 | 94° 06' 42'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 94.1117 | -1.2533 | 93.2294 |
| 152 | -0791-08-29 08:15:05 | 1432385.71880 | 06:03:04 | 96° 47' 23'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 96.7897 | -2.6781 | 93.8136 |
| 153 | -0809-01-13 12:36:22 | 1425582.90030 | 06:08:17 | 95° 36' 24'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 95.6067 | 1.1831 | 94.2192 |
| 154 | -0828-05-29 14:07:03 | 1418779.96320 | 06:13:31 | 93° 48' 50'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 93.8139 | 1.7928 | 94.1668 |
| 155 | -0847-10-13 19:20:37 | 1411977.18100 | 06:18:48 | 95° 18' 50'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 95.3139 | -1.5000 | 94.3249 |
| 156 | -0865-02-27 19:32:16 | 1405174.18910 | 06:24:07 | 97° 22' 42'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 97.3783 | -2.0644 | 94.8673 |
| 157 | -0884-07-13 06:29:40 | 1398370.64560 | 06:29:28 | 96° 40' 04'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 96.6678 | 0.7106 | 95.2303 |
| 158 | -0903-11-26 16:02:14 | 1391567.04320 | 06:34:51 | 94° 55' 30'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 94.9250 | 1.7428 | 95.2152 |
| 159 | -0921-04-12 12:10:44 | 1384763.88250 | 06:40:17 | 96° 27' 39'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 96.4608 | -1.5358 | 95.3926 |
| 160 | -0940-08-26 16:05:27 | 1377961.04550 | 06:45:45 | 99° 00' 17'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 99.0047 | -2.5439 | 96.0073 |
| 161 | -0958-01-10 17:13:54 | 1371158.09300 | 06:51:15 | 97° 35' 15'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 97.5875 | 1.4172 | 96.3548 |
| 162 | -0977-05-27 19:08:36 | 1364355.17260 | 06:56:47 | 96° 01' 18'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 96.0217 | 1.5658 | 96.2780 |
| 163 | -0996-10-11 04:17:35 | 1357552.55390 | 07:02:22 | 97° 46' 51'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 97.7808 | -1.7592 | 96.4954 |
| 164 | -1014-02-25 09:17:09 | 1350749.76190 | 07:07:58 | 99° 31' 05'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 99.5181 | -1.7372 | 97.0659 |
| 165 | -1033-07-12 01:11:00 | 1343946.42430 | 07:13:37 | 98° 34' 01'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 98.5669 | 0.9511 | 97.3912 |
| 166 | -1052-11-24 15:00:43 | 1337143.00050 | 07:19:18 | 97° 06' 53'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 97.1147 | 1.4522 | 97.3648 |
| 167 | -1070-04-10 11:58:44 | 1330339.87410 | 07:25:02 | 98° 49' 05'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 98.8181 | -1.7033 | 97.5798 |
| 168 | -1089-08-25 09:48:17 | 1323536.78350 | 07:30:47 | 100° 56' 31'' | -0° 00' 00'' | 100.9419 | -2.1239 | 98.1815 |
These can be verified by NASA - JPL Horizons System. The results differ by around 6 minutes (difference probably due to NASA use of DE441).
- * indicates future predictions have been used to calculate average.
- Pink & amber cells indicate deviation from pattern
- Red cells indicate serious deviation from pattern
- Amber border indicate nodal period contains Ptolemy eclipse
- Red text indicates excessive lunar node movement
Image credit: F Richard Stephenson: Historical eclipses and Earth's rotation (highlights added)
In the above image, deviation from the nodal patterns have been highlighted in pink and red to match the table above. The chart only goes back as far as 810 BC. What is evident from the above image is that priority is given to the modern day dating of ancient eclipses, rather than where they naturally fit.
For those interested in facts; In the lunar nodal period table above, rows 1-23 is data based on information gathered using telescopes and satellites, which is much more reliable than ancient methods. This dataset could be considered "a thing that is known or proved to be true" or factual. The pattern of this factual information can be seen over a 990 year period down to 1034 AD. The period that deviates from this pattern the most, contain Ptolemy's eclipses (indicated by an amber border) which is a primary source for dating the period. If these eclipses cannot conform to an established factual pattern, surely this would indicate that they are not in the correct place. Some of these eclipses must be the empirical observations referred to by Fred Espenak on NASA eclipse site. These are based on observation, rather than theory, or in other words they have been made to fit. The pattern must be important because it it restored at row 161.
What Difference Does a Degree Make?
The easiest way to see the effects of a seemingly small difference in moon position, is to consider the solar eclipse in April 136BC used by Stephenson. The image below shows the path of the eclipse with ΔT set to zero.
Image credit: F Richard Stephenson (2003): Historical eclipses and Earth's rotation
This is what the eclipse would have looked like in Babylon with ΔT = 0
SE-136BC A
- Moon: Ecliptic L: +21°31'45" B:+00°28'07"
- ΔT: 0
By adjusting Earth rotation by 12,025 seconds the solar eclipse can be made to fit as described
SE-136BC B
- Moon: Ecliptic L: +21°31'24" B:-00°00'52"
- ΔT: 12025.35s ( 03h20m25.35s )
This is the difference that ΔT makes
SE-136BC C
- Moon: Ecliptic L: +19°27'14" B:-00°12'19"
- ΔT: 0
- Degree difference between SE-136BC B & C: 2.075°, 02°04'31" (almost 1 cubit)
Whilst Stephenson is specifically discussing ΔT, the effects would be similar if the lunar nodes were manipulated by a degree or so.
Image credit: F Richard Stephenson: Historical eclipses and Earth's rotation (highlights added)
We have reused the above image to illustrate where the solar eclipse of April 136 BC (-135) lies in relation to the pattern of the nodal periods
Notice how a 1° lunar node position makes a difference to the path of the moon.
We have considered two ways the moon and earth can be manipulated using ΔT and the position of the lunar nodes, to make eclipses fit the ancient descriptions. Neither of these methods affect the length of the lunar cycle. We simulated what would happen if the nodal period pattern (Table 1) continued uninterrupted, using several methods. The results varied between and 1° and 4°+ difference.
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