Uleg Bek's Observatory, Samarkand, Uzbekistan
Mural depicting Uleg Bek and scenes from his life. He was born in 1394, son of Shakhrukh Mirzo and grandson of Amir Timur. After Amir Timur's death, Uleg Bek was appointed ruler, and ruled from 1409-1449. He was a better scientist than ruler, and was ordered assasinated by his son. At the observatory, in pre-telescope days, Uleg Bek and his astronomers built a 30m meridian arc and other instruments. They were able to identify and plot the movements of the sun, moon, and planets 200 years before Galileo, and he calculated the length of a year to within a few seconds. After his assasination, his fellow scientists fled to Constantinople, and his star catalog was published there. His observatory, originally built in the 1420s, was destroyed after his assasination, but since an exact copy of the observatory had been built in Jalalabad, India, that was used as a model in the reconstruction. The curved track of the 30m arc was uncovered by archaeologists in 1908.
Mural on observatory ceiling.
Uleg bek's observatory.
Entrance to building housing 30m arc. The observatory is built on a hill overlooking the current city, and would have been several kilometers outside the ancient city.
Building covering the 30m arc.
Observatory and building covering arc.
Portion of Uleg Bek's 30m arc.
Portion of Uleg Bek's 30m arc.
Mural depicting Uleg Bek and scenes from his life. He was born in 1394, son of Shakhrukh Mirzo and grandson of Amir Timur. After Amir Timur's death, Uleg Bek was appointed ruler, and ruled from 1409-1449. He was a better scientist than ruler, and was ordered assasinated by his son. At the observatory, in pre-telescope days, Uleg Bek and his astronomers built a 30m meridian arc and other instruments. They were able to identify and plot the movements of the sun, moon, and planets 200 years before Galileo, and he calculated the length of a year to within a few seconds. After his assasination, his fellow scientists fled to Constantinople, and his star catalog was published there. His observatory, originally built in the 1420s, was destroyed after his assasination, but since an exact copy of the observatory had been built in Jalalabad, India, that was used as a model in the reconstruction. The curved track of the 30m arc was uncovered by archaeologists in 1908.
Mural on observatory ceiling.
Uleg bek's observatory.
Entrance to building housing 30m arc. The observatory is built on a hill overlooking the current city, and would have been several kilometers outside the ancient city.
Building covering the 30m arc.
Observatory and building covering arc.
Portion of Uleg Bek's 30m arc.
Portion of Uleg Bek's 30m arc.