Zhang Heng (M.S.78-139) was an inventor, astronomer, mathematician, painter and literary scholar who lived during the Eastern Han Dynasty. Among his inventions are the “celestial sphere” and the “seismograph”, which allow people to create drafts related to astrological maps and earthquake perceptions.
Zhang Heng was a hard-working and honest man, according to Chinese historians. Throughout his life he acted ethically and distanced himself from political groups. As a result, there is no rapid rise in his career as a civil servant. He once said he didn't care about publicity, but about his passion for morality and research. Zhang Heng, M.S.In 117, he invented a device called the “celestial sphere”, based on theories and his own observations. This device was powered by a water wheel. It is the world's first water-powered astronomical instrument to display the celestial sphere. This device makes a full rotation per day through water wheel-powered gears. At that time, people had doubts about whether it was possible for the “celestial sphere”to reflect astronomical events. Zhang Heng decided to go public in the square to prove that the device worked. During the Test, he stayed inside to find the position of the stars according to the “celestial sphere”exactly. The locations were confirmed by people outside. It was then that people began to believe that the “celestial sphere”could measure astronomical events. Zhang Heng listed 2,500 stars with the “celestial sphere " and prepared the first comprehensive Chinese astrology map. According to Chinese history, Zhang Heng after years of data he collected about earthquakes and theories he read m.S.In 132, he invented the world's first earthquake detector, the seismograph.
M.S.In 138, the seismograph detected that an earthquake had occurred in the Northwest. However, people in the capital Luoyang felt nothing, and some bureaucrats and academics blamed the device for not working properly. A few days later, a messenger from the Northwest reported an earthquake in the area, and this occurred exactly at the time the seismograph detected it. People were affected by the seismograph. It was the first earthquake detector in human history. Zhang Heng is recognized as a pioneer of seismic research worldwide. Zhang Heng is a mathematician with works such as the number of pi between 3,1466 and 3,1622. Although this is slightly different from the number of pi we know today, its certainty was a surprising success dating back 1,800 years. Zhang Heng's achievement in science was also honored by subsequent generations. In 1970, the United Nations named a crater on the moon Zhanghengite after him. The Minor Planet 1802, discovered in 1977, was again named after this great Chinese astronomer.
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