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- Gislén, Lars, et al.
(författare)
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Father Antoine Thomas and the Birth of ‘Modern Astronomy’ in Thailand
- 2019
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Ingår i: Exploring the History of Southeast Asian Astronomy : A Review of Current Projects and Future Prospects and Possibilities - A Review of Current Projects and Future Prospects and Possibilities. - 9783030627768 - 9783030627775 ; , s. 225-252
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Bokkapitel (refereegranskat)abstract
- ‘Modern astronomy’ was introduced to Siam (present-day Thailand) when the Belgian Jesuit missionary-astronomer Father Antoine Thomas carried out astronomical observations in 1681 and 1682 in order to determine the latitude and longitude of Ayutthaya. Three years later a contingent of French Jesuit missionary astronomers observed a total lunar eclipse from Lop Buri, which marked the start of an intensive two-and-a-half year period of observational activity at Lop Buri under the sponsorship of King Narai. This ended only with King Narai’s premature death in July 1688, and Western missionary-astronomers were then expelled from Siam.This situation only changed markedly nearly two hundred years later when another Royal supporter of astronomy, King Rama IV, invited French astronomers to observe the total solar eclipse of 18 August 1868 from Siam, and his son, King Rama V, hosted British astronomers during the 6 April 1875 total solar eclipse. Thailand’s romance with solar astronomy continued during the 9 May 1929 solar eclipse when King Rama VII visited British and German astronomers based near Siam’s southern border, and in the 1930s Thailand’s first astronomy course was taught at Chulalongkorn University.This chapter provides biographical information about Antoine Thomas, before examining the astronomical observations that he made in 1681 and 1682, and recent attempts to pinpoint his observing site. It then briefly sketches the development of ‘modern astronomy’ in Siam during the remainder of the seventeenth century, and in the nineteenth century, leading up to the emergence of professional astronomy during the twentieth century, and the formation of the National Astronomical Research Institute of Thailand in 2009.
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- Orchiston, Wayne, et al.
(författare)
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Showcasing Seventeenth-Century Jesuit Astronomy In Asia : The Lead Up To The First Scientific Observations Of A Solar Eclipse Made In Siam
- 2021
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Ingår i: Journal of Astronomical History and Heritage. - 1440-2807. ; 24:2, s. 498-520
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The first great ruler to encourage the adoption of Western culture and technology throughout Siam was King Narai, who also had a passion for astronomy. He showed this by encouraging French and other Jesuit missionaries, some with astronomical interests and training, to settle in Siam from the early 1660s. One of these was Father Antoine Thomas, and he was the first European known to have carried out scientific astronomical observations from Siam, in 1681 and 1682. Later, the lunar eclipse of 11 December 1685 assumed an important place in the history of Thai astronomy when a contingent of French missionary-astronomers joined King Narai and his court astrologers and observed it from the King’s country retreat near Lop Buri. This event so impressed the King that he approved the erection of a large modern well-equipped astronomical observatory at Lop Buri. Construction of Wat San Paulo Observatory—as it was known—began in 1686 and was completed in 1687. A second contingent of French Jesuit astronomers settled in Lop Buri at about this time, and were involved in various astronomical observations. Arguably, the last of these of any importance was of the partial solar eclipse of 30 April 1688, just one week before the sudden demise of scientific astronomy in Siam. In this paper we examine King Narai’s enlightened attitude towards Western science and technology and his growing interest in Western astronomy, before discussing the observations that he and/or the Jesuit missionaryastronomers made leading up to and including the partial solar eclipse of 30 April 1688. We then explore the growing disquiet among some members of the Royal Family that triggered a coup on 5 June 1688 when King Narai was overthrown and most of the Western missionary-astronomers were expelled from Siam.
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- Orchiston, Wayne, et al.
(författare)
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The role of eclipses and european observers in the development of ‘modern astronomy’ in Thailand
- 2019
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Ingår i: The Growth and Development of Astronomy and Astrophysics in India and the Asia-Pacific Region : ICOA-9, 2016 - ICOA-9, 2016. - Singapore : Springer Singapore. - 1570-6591. - 9789811336447 - 9789811336454 ; 54, s. 173-216
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- ‘Modern astronomy’ was introduced to Siam (present-day Thailand) (Siam officially changed its name to Thailand in 1939) when the Belgian Jesuit missionary-astronomer Father Antoine Thomas carried out stellar and lunar eclipse observations during 1681 and 1682 in order to determine the latitude and longitude of Ayutthaya. Three years later a contingent of French Jesuit missionary astronomers observed a total lunar eclipse from Lop Buri, which marked the start of an intensive two-and-a-half year period of observational activity at Lop Buri under the sponsorship of King Narai. During this interval, a partial solar eclipse and two further lunar eclipses were observed from a number of different observing sites. Although a substantial astronomical observatory was constructed in Lop Buri and this was used by French Jesuit missionary-astronomers, ‘modern astronomy’ ended suddenly in 1688 when King Narai died and most Western missionary-astronomers were expelled from Siam. ‘Modern astronomy’ only re-emerged in Siam after a hiatus of almost 200 years when another royal supporter of astronomy, King Rama IV, invited French astronomers to observe the total solar eclipse of 18 August 1868 from Siam, and his son, King Rama V, hosted British astronomers during the 6 April 1875 total solar eclipse. Thailand’s romance with total solar eclipses continued during the 9 May 1929 solar eclipse when King Rama VII visited British and German astronomers based near Siam’s southern border, and this was the catalyst required for the birth of home-grown ‘modern astronomy’. Soon after, Siam’s first astronomy classes began at Chulalongkorn University, and in 1944 this university hosted Siam’s first professional astronomer when Rawee Bhavilai, a solar specialist, joined the Physics Department. The latest phase in the professionalisation of astronomy occurred in 2009 when the Government approval the formation of the National Astronomical Research Institute of Thailand (NARIT). In this paper we trace the critical roles that solar and lunar eclipses played in the emergence and final adoption of ‘modern astronomy’ in Thailand from 1682 through to the present day.
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