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🏛️HistoryHistory Archive20 sec read

Ancient Greeks Built a 30-Gear Astronomical Computer Around 100 BCE

Recovered from a shipwreck in the Aegean Sea, the Antikythera mechanism was a hand-cranked analog computer that predicted eclipses and planetary cycles.

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Scientific Reports / Nature

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At least how many bronze gears have been identified in the Antikythera mechanism?

Your guess:0 gears

Key Insight

Its gear ratios mechanically encoded Babylonian and Greek astronomical cycles to predict eclipses and track civic calendars.

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01

Historical Mechanism

Built from at least 30 precision bronze gears, it even modeled the Moon's elliptical orbit using epicyclic gearing. Mechanical devices of comparable complexity did not reappear in Europe for another 1,400 years.

02

Context & Impact

Its gear ratios mechanically encoded Babylonian and Greek astronomical cycles to predict eclipses and track civic calendars.

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Scientific Reports / Nature

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What was the primary purpose of the Antikythera mechanism?

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At least how many bronze gears have been identified in the Antikythera mechanism?

30 gears

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What was the primary purpose of the Antikythera mechanism?

Calculating eclipses, planetary positions, and calendar cycles

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