The Antikythera machine, “the world’s oldest computer,” could have been started in -178 B.C.

The Antikythera Machine, considered the “world’s oldest computer”, continues to fascinate scientists. A new study looks at the exact date when it was supposed to be commissioned.

It was discovered in 1901 in the heart of a stranded Roman wreck off the Greek island of the same name. Antikythera machine It is undoubtedly one of the ancient artifacts that question and intrigue the scientific community.

For more than a century, researchers have been trying to unravel the secrets of this mysterious shoebox-sized mechanism, which houses the gears and discs on which many small inscriptions are written, and It is considered the “world’s oldest computer”.

Over the decades, scientists have gradually collected dozens of parts of the machine to understand the manufacturing process and its usefulness. Thus previous examinations made it possible to determine that it was a calculator used to predict events such as eclipses or the phases of the moon.

How old is the “world’s oldest computer”?

Today, new work can teach us more about this strange machine. In a study published on March 28 on the site arXivThe researchers say they have established the exact date of “start-up” of the mechanism, which has been known to have been in use for more than 2,000 years. This exact date is evaluated in December 22 or 23, 178 BC.

How did they come to such a conclusion? “In order to use a measuring instrument, it is necessary to have a reference point before making the measurement”Write researchers in their study.

Thanks to the spiral shape embedded in the back of the mechanism that represents a 223-month cycle called the Saros (which can be used to predict solar and lunar eclipses), scientists hypothesized that the device was first used during an annular solar eclipse. This phenomenon occurs when the Earth, Moon and Sun are aligned, but the Moon does not cover the entire Sun, creating a scheme resembling a “ring of fire”.

With this introduction, the researchers explored NASA data for all examples of an annular solar eclipse that occurred during the estimated period of its visualization. However, on December 23, 178 BC, an annular eclipse of 12 minutes could be observed.

Already disputed hypothesis

This annular eclipse is not the only astronomical event that gave direction to this research. The new moon phase began on December 22, and the winter solstice occurred on December 23.

“A lot of astronomical events happened in one day to be coincidental. On that date, there was a new moon, the moon was at its zenith, there was a solar eclipse, the sun was entering the constellation of Capricorn, and it was the winter solstice”points to Aristeidis Voulgaris, an archaeologist at Thessaloniki’s Directorate of Culture and Tourism in Greece and co-author of the study, to new world.

“December 22/23 178 BC is an ideal, practical and representative initial date for calibrating the initial position of the pointers of the mechanism”the researchers progressed in their study.

However, this assumption is already highly contested. And some believe the study won’t stand up to peer review, which still has to be submitted. According to Alexander Jones, a professor at New York University’s Institute for the Study of the Ancient World who interviewed Live ScienceThese works exist “Many issues ranging from major issues to minor issues”that would be “A symptom of the lack of a solid foundation in the context of ancient astronomy and science”.

According to him, the Saros cycle would not actually be as reliable as one might think when one goes far back in the past. In addition, previous calculations led to completely different results: in 2014, two studies evaluated the start-up of the machine in 204 BC. But for Aristeidis Voulgaris, this would not explain the representation of the winter solstice in the machine inscriptions. So the discussion should remain open.