Ancient Civilizations and their Contributions to Astronomy By Caleb Bravick 3000 BCE Egyptians predict the rise of Sirius to predict the nile flooding 2800 BCE Egyptians establish 365 solar day calendar 2137 BCE Chinese record solar eclipses, some of the earliest recordings we know of 700 BCE Babylonians use mathematical equations to predict celestial body movements 600 BCE Ancient persians make accurate solar calendar 500 BCE Babylonians Invent the Zodiac 500 BCE Pythagoras proposes that the earth is round 300 BCE Aristarchus of Samos, a Greek astronomer, creates heliocentrism 300 BCE Mayans make the long count calendar, used to record cosmic events starting from august 11th, 3114 BCE 200 BCE Ancient persians invent the first illustrated star charts 28 BCE Chinese record sunspots 499 Indian astronomer Aryabhata proposes the earth spins on its axis 499 Aryabhata figures out that the moon shines due to reflected light from the sun 800 Mayan Observation tables invented, used to record movement of celestial bodies
