The Astrolabe Project

For quite some time now I have been basing my class, and my discussions here, on an astrolabe with fairly basic options. Linked to the right you will find a zip file containing the components for this basic astrolabe, along with the handout for my class.

But there is more to the astrolabe than just the basic functions I have discussed so far. An examination of astrolabes from the medieval period shows a wide range of advanced function options available to the users. Over time, I have started to add some of these slowly to the Astrolabe Generator application, so that people out there can play with them. But up to now I have not spent any real time discussing of how they are used. Over the next few weeks I hope to examine several of these advanced functions.

I have rearranged the links on the left and added a new download: An Advanced Astrolabe example. This differs from the Basic example in several ways. On the front you will see new markings on the plate for the Houses of Heaven; on the back I have added a sine/cosine scale (upper left), an Arcs of the Signs scale (upper right) and the Lunar Mansions (center). In the next few posts I will discuss the purpose and use of each of these in turn.