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94-417: Emperor Renzong's father Emperor Zhenzong died in 1022 leaving the 12 year-old Renzong as the new emperor. His adoptive mother Empress Liu acted as the regent before Renzong reached majority. By 1027, Renzong was old enough to rule on his own but Liu refused to step down and ruled until her death in 1033. Compared to other renowned Chinese emperors, Emperor Renzong is less well-known. His reign represented

188-422: A zhang corresponds to ten chi , and that one chi corresponds to ten cun . The angular units are not the ones used to determine stars' coordinates, which are given in terms of du , an angular unit corresponding to the average angular distance travelled by the sun per day, which corresponds to around 360/365.25 degrees, in other words almost one degree. The use of different angular units can be surprising, but it

282-505: A Nestorian Christian doctor, Ibn Butlan , transcribed in the Uyun al-Anba , a book on detailed biographies of physicians in the Islamic world compiled by Ibn Abi Usaybi'a (1194–1270) in the mid-thirteenth century. This is a translation of the passage in question: I copied the following hand written testimony [that of Ibn Butlan]. He stated: "One of the famous epidemics of our time has occurred when

376-565: A considerable angle of 1 or 2 degrees, meaning that the distance from the remnant to ζ Tauri was therefore considerable. Aside from the fact that this theory does not account for the large angular sizes of certain comets, expressed in zhang , it comes up against the fact that there it does not make sense to measure the gap between a guest star and a star located so far away from it, when there are closer asterisms that could be used. In their controversial article (see European sightings, below) Collins and his colleagues make another suggestion: on

470-510: A contradiction between this period and the observation of the guest star: the star was close to the sun, making daytime and nighttime observation impossible. The visibility in daylight as described by the Chinese texts is thus validated by the Japanese documents, and is consistent with a period of moderate visibility, which implies that the star's period of diurnal visibility was very short. In contrast,

564-417: A few inches" therefore suggests an angular distance in the order of one degree or less. If all the available elements strongly suggest that the star of 1054 was a supernova, and that in the area next to where the star was seen, there is a remnant of a supernova which has all of the characteristics expected of an object that is around 1,000 years old, a major problem arises: the new star is described as being to

658-521: A note at the bottom of the page as being "close to NGC 1952", one of the names for the Crab Nebula, but it does not seem to create an explicit link between them. In 1928, Edwin Hubble was the first to note that the changing aspect of the Crab Nebula, which was growing bigger in size, suggests that it is the remains of a stellar explosion. He realised that the apparent speed of change in its size signifies that

752-533: A result the comparison with older snapshots was easy and emphasized a general expansion of the cloud. The points were moving away from the centre, and did so faster as they got further from it. Also in 1921, Knut Lundmark compiled the data for the "guest stars" mentioned in the Chinese chronicles known in the West. He based this on older works, having analysed various sources such as the Wenxian Tongkao , studied for

846-469: A small time period, such as a few years, whereas such substantial changes are possible if the size of the object does not exceed a diameter of a few light-years. Lampland's comments were confirmed some weeks later by John Charles Duncan , an astronomer at the Mount Wilson Observatory . He benefited from photographic material obtained with equipment and emulsions that had not changed since 1909; as

940-579: A spectacular star appeared in [the zodiac star] Gemini, of the year 446 [of the Muslim calendar]. In the autumn of that year, fourteen thousand people were buried in Constantinople. Thereafter, in the middle of the summer of 447, the majority of the people of Fostat and all foreigners died". He [Ibn Butlan] continues: "While this spectacular star appeared in the sign of Gemini [...] it caused the epidemic in Fostat by

1034-406: A star appearing in the immediate vicinity of Tianguan. While SN 1006 , which was significantly brighter than SN 1054, was mentioned by several Arab chroniclers, there exist no Arabic reports relating to the rather faint SN 1181 . Only one Arabic account has been found concerning SN 1054, whose brightness is between those of the last two stars mentioned. This account, discovered in 1978, is that of

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1128-514: A state of perpetual poverty. This eventually caused organized rebellions to take place throughout the country and the breakdown of the Song government. Renzong is known for his reform attempt known as the Qingli Reforms (庆历新政, Qingli Xinzheng), initiated around 1040–1045, represented a significant reform movement aimed at strengthening the government and improving administrative efficiency. Advocated by

1222-453: A systematic compilation of records from China were the father and son Biot. In 1843, the sinologist Édouard Biot translated for his father, the astronomer and physicist Jean-Baptiste Biot , passages from the astronomical treatise of the 348-volume Chinese encyclopaedia, the Wenxian Tongkao . Almost 80 years later in 1921, Knut Lundmark undertook a similar effort based on a greater number of sources. In 1942, Jan Oort , convinced that

1316-567: Is comparatively easy, as it is indicated that it is located at the foot of the Five Chariots asterism, the nature of which is left in hardly any doubt by representation on maps of the Chinese sky: it consists of a large pentagon containing the bright stars of the Auriga . As Tianguan is also represented to the north of the Three Stars asterism, the composition of which is well known, corresponding to

1410-448: Is easily explained as a transcription error, the historical date being jichou 己丑, 4 July. The description of the guest star's location as "to the south-east of Tianguan, perhaps several inches away" has perplexed modern astronomers, because the Crab Nebula is not situated in the south-east, but to the north-west of Zeta Tauri. The duration of visibility is explicitly mentioned in chapter 12 of Song Shi , and slightly less accurately, in

1504-501: Is easily observed by amateur astronomers thanks to its brightness, and was also catalogued early on by professional astronomers, long before its true nature was understood and identified. When the French astronomer Charles Messier watched for the return of Halley's Comet in 1758, he confused the nebula for the comet, as he was unaware of the former's existence. Motivated by this error, he created his catalogue of non-cometary nebulous objects,

1598-472: Is known within the Milky Way . SN 1054 is one of eight supernovae in the Milky Way that can be identified because written testimony describing the explosion has survived. In the nineteenth century, astronomers began to take an interest in the historic records. They compiled and examined the records as part of their research on recent novae , comets, and later, the supernovae. The first Westerners to attempt

1692-417: Is marked by significant progress in areas such as astronomy, printing technology, agriculture, engineering, and military technology. Astronomical studies led to improvements in the calendar system and the construction of advanced observatories. Agricultural productivity was enhanced through the introduction of new tools and techniques, including the iron plow and the dragon backbone pump. In terms of engineering,

1786-447: Is not possible to know the angular size of the comet at the time it passed, it is certain that 8 zhang correspond to 180 degrees at the most (maximum visible angle on the celestial sphere), which means that one zhang can hardly exceed 20 degrees, and therefore one cun cannot exceed 0.2 degrees. A more rigorous estimation was made from 1972 on the basis of references of minimal separations expressed in chi or cun between two stars in

1880-423: Is not the one used for other angular distances. The reason for this choice to use different units in the Chinese world is not well known. However, the exact value of these new units ( zhang , chi and cun ) was never stipulated, but can be deduced by the context in which they are used. For example, the spectacular passing of Halley's comet in 837 indicates that the tail of the comet measured 8 zhang . Even if it

1974-498: Is prior to the third part of ten days of the lunar month mentioned, which corresponds to the period of between 30 May and 8 June 1054 of the Julian calendar, which is around one month earlier than Chinese documentation. This difference is usually attributed to an error in the lunar months (fourth place and fifth place). The location of the guest star, clearly straddling the moon mansions Shen and Zuixi, corresponds to what would be expected of

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2068-469: Is recorded in Chinese documents as "the first year of the Zhihe era". Zhihe was an era name used during the reign of Emperor Renzong, and corresponds to the years 1054–1056, so the first year of the Zhihe era corresponds to the year 1054. Some of the Chinese accounts are well preserved and detailed. The oldest and most detailed accounts are from Song Huiyao and Song Shi , historiographical works of which

2162-403: Is similar to the current situation in modern astronomy, where the angular unit used to measure angular distances between two points is certainly the same as for declination (the degree), but is different for right ascension (which is expressed in angular hours; an angular hour corresponds to exactly 15 degrees). In Chinese astronomy, right ascension and declination have the same unit, which

2256-401: Is south-south-east of β Tauri. Collins et al. suggest therefore that at the time of its discovery, the star was seen to the south-east of β Tauri, and that as the days passed and visibility improved, astronomers were able to see that it was in fact a lot closer to ζ Tauri, but that the direction "south-east" used for the first star was kept in error. The solution to this problem

2350-481: The Messier Catalogue , to avoid such mistakes in the future. The nebula is catalogued as the first Messier object, or M1 . The Crab Nebula was identified as the supernova remnant of SN 1054 between 1921 and 1942, at first speculatively (1920s), with some plausibility by 1939, and beyond reasonable doubt by Jan Oort in 1942. In 1921, Carl Otto Lampland was the first to announce that he had seen changes in

2444-584: The Song Huiyao . The last sighting was on 6 April 1056, after a total period of visibility of 642 days. This duration is supported by the Song Shi . The Song Huiyao by contrast mentions a visibility of the guest star of only 23 days, but this is after mentioning visibility during daylight. This period of 23 days applies in all likelihood solely to visibility during the day, which naturally was much shorter. The Song Huiyao (literally "Collected important documents of

2538-505: The Yuan Dynasty , Renzong is portrayed a merciful, tolerant, modest, lenient, and frugal emperor known for restraining his personal sentiments in service to the throne. As recorded in the book, Emperor Renzong worked late one night and found himself craving mutton. However, just as a servant was about to instruct the cooks to prepare the dish, Renzong intervened. He expressed concern that ordering mutton might lead to excess and wastefulness as

2632-558: The Zhao family , were allegedly discovered. This was followed up by imperial sacrificial ceremonies carried out at Mount Tai . From 1013 to 1015, the emperor issued official decrees deifying the Jade Emperor as the highest ruler of Heaven. Champa rice was introduced to China from Champa during Emperor Zhenzong's reign. In 1020, Emperor Zhenzong became affected by an illness which was to cause his death two years later and unable to handle

2726-537: The Crab Nebula was the "guest star" of 1054 described by the Chinese, asked sinologist J.J.L. Duyvendak to help him compile new evidence on the observation of the event. Star-like objects that appeared temporarily in the sky were generically called " guest stars " ( kè xīng 客星) by Chinese astronomers. The guest star of 1054 occurred during the reign of the Emperor Renzong of the Song dynasty (960–1279). The relevant year

2820-474: The Crown Prince. Renzong died in 1063 and was succeeded by Emperor Yingzong . The nation mourned his death, from the new Emperor to the ordinaries. Across the northern border, Emperor Daozong of Liao and his people were also found lamenting in tears, as the two countries enjoyed a relatively peaceful period spanning 42 years during Renzong's reign. In the book History of Song compiled by historians of

2914-511: The Khitan kingdom, on 13 November 1053 and 10 May 1054. Of these, only one occurred around noon, that of 13 November; it seems likely that this is what the document mentions. As for the guest star, only a rough estimate of location is given, corresponding to the moon mansion Mao. This mansion is situated just east of where the star appeared, as mentioned in the other testimonies. Since no other known significant astronomical event occurred in this region of

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3008-701: The Khitans waged war against the Song Empire. Emperor Zhenzong, leading his army, struck back at the Khitans. Despite initial successes, in 1005, Emperor Zhenzong concluded the Chanyuan Treaty . The treaty resulted in over a century of peace, but at the price of the Song Empire agreeing to an inferior position to the Liao Empire, and also agreeing to pay an annual tribute of 100,000 ounces of silver and over 200,000 bolts of silk. The admission of inferiority would come to plague

3102-467: The Nile being low when it appeared in 445 [sic]." The three years cited ( AH 445, 446, 447) refer, respectively, to: 23 April 1053 – 11 April 1054, 12 April 1054 – 1 April 1055, and 2 April 1055 – 20 March 1056. There is an apparent inconsistency in the year of occurrence of the star, first announced as 446, then 445. This problem is solved by reading other entries in the book, which quite explicitly specify that

3196-517: The Nile was low at 446. This year of the Muslim calendar ran from 12 April 1054 to 1 April 1055, which is compatible with the appearance of the star in July 1054, as its location (admittedly rather vague), is in the astrological sign of Gemini (which, due to axial precession , covers the eastern part of the Constellation Taurus). The date of the event in 446 is harder to determine, but the reference to

3290-573: The Song Empire near the borders. In 1038, the Tangut chieftain Li Yuanhao named himself emperor of Da Xia and demanded Emperor Renzong recognise him as an equal. The Song court recognised Li Yuanhao as governor but not as "emperor", a title it regarded as exclusive to the Song emperor. After intense diplomatic contacts, in 1043 the Tangut state accepted the recognition of the Song emperor as emperor in exchange for annual gifts, which implied tacit recognition on

3384-552: The Song dynasty") covers the period 960–1220. Huiyao is a traditional form of history books in China which aimed mainly to preserve primary sources , and as such are important sources supplementing the official Twenty-Four Histories . The Song dynasty had a specific government department dedicated to compiling the Huiyao , and some 2,200 volumes were published in ten batches during the Song dynasty. However, most of these documents were lost by

3478-539: The South-East of Tianguan , while the Crab Nebula is to the North-East. This problem has been known since the 1940s and has long been unsolved. In 1972 for example, Ho Peng Yoke and his colleagues suggested that the Crab Nebula was not the product of the explosion of 1054, but that the true remnant was to the South-East, as indicated in several Chinese sources. For this, they envisaged that the angular unit cun corresponds to

3572-413: The affairs of state. By this time, Zhenzong’s wife Empress Liu was already established as power behind the throne and handled the affairs of state. She continued to act unofficially as regent of China for the two remaining years of Zhenzong’s life. Zhenzong died in 1022 of his illness. He was succeeded by his 6th son, Zhao Zhen who took the throne as Emperor Renzong , but with actual power remaining in

3666-443: The bright stars of Orion , its possible localisation is strongly restricted to the immediate proximity of the star ζ Tauri , located between "Five Chariots" and "Three Stars". This star, of medium brightness ( apparent magnitude of 3.3), is the only star of its level of brightness in this area of the sky (there is no other star that is brighter than an apparent magnitude of 4.5 within 7 degrees of ζ Tauri), and therefore

3760-483: The candidates were Zeng Gong , Su Shi , and Su Zhe , accompanied by their father Su Xun . These scholars would later be recognized as some of the most influential literati in Chinese history. Emperor Renzong elevated the 46th-generation descendants of Confucius to the current title of Duke Yansheng . They were previously of lower noble ranks. During the reign of Emperor Renzong (1022–1063), China experienced notable advancements in science and technology. This period

3854-424: The case of various conjunctions. The results suggest that one cun is between 0.1 and 0.2 degrees and that one chi is between 0.44 and 2.8 degrees, a range which is compatible with the estimations for one cun . A more solid estimation error is that it is generally accepted that one chi is in the order of one degree (or one du ), and that one cun is in the order of one tenth of a degree. The expression "perhaps

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3948-532: The context of this event: the logical remnant of the supernova corresponding to the guest star is the Crab Nebula , but it is not situated to the southeast of ζ Tauri, rather in the opposite direction, to the northwest. The term "perhaps a few inches" ( ke shu cun in the Latin transliteration) is relatively uncommon in Chinese astronomical documents. The first term, ke , is translated as "approximately" or "perhaps",

4042-452: The cooks may start to prepare it regularly. Choosing to endure his hunger rather than risk unnecessary waste, he displayed a commitment to frugality and thoughtful governance. On another account, Renzong ordered that officers of government must be very cautious in using the death penalty, and if an officer wrongly sentenced an innocent person to death even once, he would never be promoted. Renzong once remarked to his ministers: "I have never used

4136-401: The day of the cycle given in the Chinese documents is compatible with the months that they state, reinforcing the idea that the month on the Japanese document is incorrect. The study of other medieval supernovas ( SN 1006 and SN 1181 ) reveals a proximity in the dates of discovery of a guest star in China and Japan, although clearly based on different sources. Fujiwara no Teika's interest in

4230-536: The death of King Xingzong. Various historical documents allow us to establish the date of death of the Emperor Xingzong as 28 August 1055, during the eighth lunar month of the twenty-fourth (and not twenty-third) year of his reign. The dates of the two astronomical events mentioned (the eclipse and the appearance of the guest star) are not specified, but were probably before the obituary (2 or 3 years at most). Two solar eclipses were visible shortly before that date in

4324-485: The director of the Astronomical Office said "The guest star has disappeared, which means the departure of the host [that it represents]." Previously, during the first year of the Zhihe era, during the fifth lunar month, it had appeared at dawn, in the direction of the east, under the watch of Tiānguān (天關, Zeta Tauri). It had been seen in daylight, like Venus. It had rays stemming in all directions, and its colour

4418-470: The emergence of some of the most esteemed literati in Chinese history. Figures such as Yan Shu , Fan Zhongyan , Ouyang Xiu and Mei Yaochen all lived through this era and commenced or developed their literary careers during Renzong's reign. A landmark event in 1057, under Renzong's rule, was the Imperial Examination , which admitted several candidates destined to achieve nationwide acclaim. Among

4512-415: The explosion of SN 1054 , a supernova . In 1055, Emperor Renzong became critically ill and started to worry about having no successor because his sons all died prematurely. Acting on the advice of his ministers, Emperor Renzong agreed to bring two of his younger male relatives into his palace. One of them was his nephew Zhao Zongshi, the future Emperor Yingzong , who was eventually chosen and designated as

4606-511: The explosion which it comes from occurred only nine centuries ago (as observed on Earth), which puts the date of the explosion in the period covered by Lundmark's compilation. He also noted that the only possible nova in the region of the Taurus constellation (where the cloud is located) is that of 1054, whose age is estimated to correspond to an explosion dating from the start of the second millennium. Hubble therefore deduced, correctly, that this cloud

4700-414: The extant text was redacted perhaps within a few decades of the event. There are also some later records, redacted in the 13th century, which are not necessarily independent of the older ones. Three accounts are apparently related because they describe the angular distance from the guest star to Zeta Tauri as "perhaps several inches away", but they are in apparent disagreement about the date of appearance of

4794-470: The first time from an astronomical perspective by Jean-Baptiste Biot in the middle of the 19th century. Lundmark gives a list of 60 suspected novae , then the generic term for a stellar explosion, in fact covering what is now understood as two distinct phenomena, novae and supernovae. The nova of 1054, already mentioned by the Biots in 1843, is part of the list. It stipulates the location of this guest star in

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4888-557: The first year of the Jiayou era.) There is an account of the star from the Liao dynasty , which ruled in the area around northeast China from 907 to 1125. The book in question, the Qidan Guo Zhi , was compiled by Ye Longli in 1247. It includes various astronomical notes, some of which are clearly copied from the Song Shi . This entry referring to the star of 1054 seems unique: Chongxi era of

4982-435: The first year of the Zhihe era, a guest star had appeared at dawn, in the direction of the east, under the watch of Tianguan. Now it has disappeared. In chapter 56 ("Astronomical treaty") of the same document, the guest star is again mentioned in a chapter dedicated to this type of phenomenon, this time focusing on its appearance, Zhihe era of the reign, first year, fifth lunar month, jichou day. A guest star has appeared to

5076-447: The five traditional virtues that distinguished the “benevolent emperor” from all other rulers: “Emperor Renzong feared Heaven, he loved his people, he sacrificed to his ancestors, he was fond of learning, and he obeyed admonitions. Practicing these five virtues is what is called ‘being benevolent. Consorts and their issue: Emperor Zhenzong Emperor Zhenzong of Song (23 December 968 – 23 March 1022), personal name Zhao Heng ,

5170-492: The foreign affairs of the Song Empire, while the payments slowly depleted the empire's coffers. He was responsible for ordering the shipment of 30,000 bushels of quick-maturing rice seed from the Fujian Province to the lower Yangtze basin in 1011–1012, improving agriculture. Emperor Zhenzong stressed the importance of Taoism at his imperial court. It was during his reign that the so-called Heavenly Texts, which glorified

5264-590: The government and were eventually rescinded following Fan Zhongyan's resignation from office. Despite their brief implementation, the Qingli Reforms are regarded as a precursor to later, more extensive reforms in the Song Dynasty and hold an important place in Chinese historical studies. During the reign of Emperor Renzong, the Song Dynasty experienced a significant cultural and literary flourishing. This period saw

5358-463: The guest star seems to have come accidentally whilst observing a comet in December 1230, which prompted him to search for evidence of past guest stars, among those SN 1054 (as well as SN 1006 and SN 1181 , the two other historic supernovas from the early second millennium). The entry relating to SN 1054 can be translated as: Tengi era of the emperor Go-Reizei , second year, fourth lunar month, after

5452-567: The hands of Empress Liu, who became empress dowager . A number of Chinese artefacts dating from the Tang dynasty and Song dynasty , some of which had been owned by Emperor Zhenzong, were excavated and came into the hands of the Kuomintang general Ma Hongkui , who refused to publicise the findings. Among the artefacts were a white marble tablet from the Tang dynasty, gold nails, and bands made out of metal. It

5546-466: The identification of the guest star of 1054 is established beyond all reasonable doubt. Most other historical supernovas are not confirmed so conclusively: supernovas of the first millennium ( SN 185 , SN 386 and SN 393 ) are established on the basis of a single document each, and so they cannot be confirmed; in relation to the supposed historical supernova which followed the one in 1054, SN 1181 , there are legitimate doubts concerning

5640-431: The latter being currently preferred. The second term, shu , means "several", and more specifically any number between 3 and 9 (limits included). Finally, cun resembles a unit of measurement for angles translated by the term "inch". It is part of a group of three angular units, zhang (also written chang ), chi ("foot") and cun ("inch"). Different astronomical documents indicate without much possible discussion that

5734-584: The middle period of ten days. At chou [a Chinese term for 1–3am], a guest star appeared in the degrees of the moon mansions of Zuixi and Shen . It has been viewed in the direction of the East and has emerged from the Tianguan star. It was as big as Jupiter. The source used by Fujiwara no Teika is the records of Yasutoshi Abe (Onmyōdō doctor), but it seems to have been based, for all the astronomical events he has recorded, on documents of Japanese origin. The date he gives

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5828-482: The midwestern United States may have been built in response to the supernova's appearance in the sky. The remnant of SN 1054, which consists of debris ejected during the explosion, is known as the Crab Nebula . It is located in the sky near the star Zeta Tauri (ζ Tauri). The core of the exploding star formed a pulsar , called the Crab Pulsar (or PSR B0531+21). The nebula and the pulsar that it contains are some of

5922-457: The morning of 4 July, the star ζ Tauri was not bright enough and too low on the horizon to be visible. If the guest star, which was located close to it, was visible, it is only because its brightness was comparable to Venus. However, there was another star, brighter and higher on the horizon, which was possibly visible, for reference: Beta Tauri (β Tauri). This star is located at around 8 degrees north-north-west of ζ Tauri. The Crab Nebula

6016-469: The most studied astronomical objects outside the Solar System . It is one of the few Galactic supernovae where the date of the explosion is well known. The two objects are the most luminous in their respective categories. For these reasons, and because of the important role it has repeatedly played in the modern era, SN 1054 is one of the best known supernovae in the history of astronomy . The Crab Nebula

6110-471: The observation of the guest star, focusing on the astrological aspect but also giving important information on the visibility of the star, by day and by night. Zhihe era, first year, seventh lunar month, 22nd day. [...] Yang Weide declared: "I humbly observe that a guest star has appeared; above the star there is a feeble yellow glimmer. If one examines the divination regarding the Emperor, the interpretation [of

6204-429: The only one likely to figure among the asterisms of "Shi Shi". All of these elements, along with some others, allow "Tianguan" to be confirmed beyond reasonable doubt as corresponding to the star ζ Tauri. Three Chinese documents indicate that the guest star was located "perhaps a few inches" South-East of Tianguan . Song Shi and Song Huiyao stipulate that it "was standing guard" for the asterism, corresponding to

6298-500: The part of the Song of the military power of the Tanguts. When Emperor Renzong came to power, he issued decrees to strengthen the military and paid massive bribes to the Khitan -led Liao dynasty , an adversary of Western Xia , in the hope that this would ensure the safety of the Song Empire. However, these policies involved a heavy price. Taxes were increased severely and the peasants lived in

6392-453: The period saw the development of sophisticated construction techniques used in large-scale projects like bridges and dams. The era witnessed a revolution in printing with the invention of movable type by Bi Sheng around 1040. The Song Dynasty is also credited with the first recorded use of gunpowder in warfare, marking a significant development in military technology during Renzong's reign. In 1054 during his reign, Chinese astronomers recorded

6486-452: The presence of this guest star] is the following: The fact that the star has not overrun Bi and that its brightness must represent a person of great value. I demand that the Office of Historiography is informed of this." All officials congratulated the Emperor, who ordered his congratulations be [back] forwarded to the Office of Historiography. First year of the era of Jiayou, third lunar month,

6580-399: The proposed remnant ( 3C58 ) and an object of less than 1000 years of age. Other historical supernovae of which there are written accounts which precede the invention of the telescope ( SN 1006 , SN 1572 and SN 1604 ) are however established with certitude. Telescope-era supernovae are of course associated with full certitude with their remnant, when one is observed, but none

6674-454: The reign of [King Xingzong ], twenty-third year eighth lunar moon, the ruler of the realm is dead. It happened before a solar eclipse at noon, and a guest star appeared. The highest officer at the Office of History, Liu Yishou had said "These are omens of the death of the King." This prediction has been realised. The account of Qidan Guo Zhi alluded to the notable astronomical events that preceded

6768-454: The reign, first year, fifth lunar month, ji-chou day. A guest star has appeared to the south-east of Tiānguān , perhaps several inches away. After a year or more, it gradually disappeared. The asterisms (or "constellations") of Chinese astronomy were catalogued around the 2nd century BC. The asterisms with the brightest stars in the sky were compiled in a work called Shi Shi , which also includes Tianguan . Identification of Tianguan

6862-421: The sky during the two years that preceded the death of Xingzong, it seems likely that the text is actually referring to the star of 1054. The Wenxian Tongkao is the first East Asian source that came to the attention of Western astronomers; it was translated by Édouard Biot in 1843. This source, compiled by Ma Duanlin in 1280, is relatively brief. The text is very close to that of the Song Shi : Zhihe era of

6956-473: The south-east of Tianguan, perhaps several inches away. After a year or more, it gradually disappeared. The Xu Zizhi Tongjian Changbian ("Long compilation of the continuation of the Zizhi Tongjian "), a book covering the period of 960–1126 and written 40 years or so later by Li Tao (1114–1183), contains the oldest Chinese testimonies relating to the observation of the star. It was rediscovered in 1970 by

7050-402: The specialist in Chinese civilisations Ho Peng Yoke and collaborators. It is relatively imprecise in the case of the explosion of SN 1054. A loose translation of what was stated: First year of the Zhihe era, fifth lunar month, ji-chou day. A guest star has appeared to the south-east of Tianguan , perhaps several inches away [of this star]. (The star disappeared in the third lunar month of

7144-531: The star north-west of the asterism ( Eta Cancri ). The oldest and most detailed record from Japan is in the Meigetsuki , the diary of Fujiwara no Teika , a poet and courtier. There are two other Japanese documents, presumably dependent on the Meigetsuki : The Meigetsuki places the event in the fourth lunar moon, one month earlier than the Chinese texts. Whatever the exact date during this month, there seems to be

7238-401: The star of 1054 was actually a supernova, based on the speed of expansion of the cloud, measured by spectroscopy, which allows astronomers to determine its physical size and distance, which he estimated at 5000 light-years . This was under the assumption that the velocities of expansion along the line of sight and perpendicularly to it were identical. Based on the reference to the brightness of

7332-434: The star which featured in the first documents discovered in 1934, he deduced that it was a supernova rather than a nova. This deduction was subsequently refined, which pushed Mayall and Jan Oort in 1942 to analyse historic accounts relating to the guest star more closely (see § Historical records below). These new accounts, globally and mutually concordant, confirm the initial conclusions by Mayall and Oort in 1939 and

7426-537: The star ζ Tauri. The "South-East" orientation has a simple astronomical meaning, the celestial sphere having, like the Earth's globe, both north and south celestial poles , the "South-East" direction thus corresponding to a "bottom-left" location in relation to the reference object (in this case, the star ζ Tauri) when it appears at the South. However, this "South-East" direction has long left modern astronomers perplexed in

7520-500: The star. The older two mention the day jichou 己丑, but the third, the Xu Zizhi Tongjian Changbian, the day yichou 乙丑. These terms refer to the Chinese sexagenary cycle , corresponding to numbers 26 and 2 of the cycle, which corresponds, in the context where they are cited, respectively, to 4 July and 10 June. As the redaction of the third source is of considerably later date (1280) and the two characters are similar, this

7614-499: The stars identified and planets, of which the trajectory can be calculated without difficulty and with great precision on the indicated dates. Of the 18 conjunctions analysed, spreading from 1172 (the Jupiter – Regulus conjunction on 5 December) to 1245 (the Saturn – Gamma Virginis conjunction on 17 May), the planet was more to the north (in the sense of a lower declination) in 15 cases, and in

7708-422: The statesman Fan Zhongyan and Ouyang Xiu , the reforms were aimed to strengthen agricultural production, reclaim lands, reduce sub-official level administrative units, and more importantly, enhance national defense by organizing local militias and reduce military expenditures. While these policies were progressive and intended to address systemic issues, they encountered resistance from conservative factions within

7802-413: The structure of the Crab Nebula. This announcement occurred at a time when the nature of the nebulae in the sky was completely unknown. Their nature, size and distance were subject to debate. Observing changes in such objects allows astronomers to determine whether their spatial extension is "small" or "large", in the sense that notable fluctuations to an object as vast as our Milky Way cannot be seen over

7896-425: The three remaining cases, it was never in the south quadrant of the star. In addition, Stephenson and Clark (1977) had already highlighted such an inversion of direction in a planetary conjunction: on 13 September 1253, an entry in the astronomical report Koryo-sa indicated that Mars had hidden the star to the south-east of the twenty-eight mansions sign Ghost ( Delta Cancri ), while in reality, it approached

7990-601: The time of the Qing Dynasty except for the synopsis and a relatively small portion preserved as part of the imperial Yongle Encyclopedia . In 1809, the portion preserved in the Yongle Encyclopedia was extracted and re-published as the Song Huiyao Jigao (the "draft extract of the Song Huiyao "). Subsequent scholars have worked on the project further and the current edition dates from 1936. This document recounts

8084-447: The word 'death' to scold others, how dare I abuse the death penalty?" Su Shi remarked about peace and good government during Renzong's period in Song history: “For more than seventy years the Song dynasty has flourished without people knowing the perils of war, but enjoying the blessings of affluence and education.” Song Dynasty Confucian scholar Fan Zuyu also praised Emperor Renzong for his good government, which, he claimed, grew out of

8178-487: The zenith of the Song Dynasty's influence and power, yet it also marked the onset of a gradual decline that would continue for over one and a half centuries. A contributing factor to this decline was potentially the dynasty's foreign policy during his tenure. The official policy of the Song Empire at the time was of pacifism and this caused the weakening of its military. The Tangut -led Western Xia state took advantage of this deterioration and waged small scale wars against

8272-604: Was not until after Ma died that his wife went to Taiwan in 1971 from the United States to bring the artefacts to Chiang Kai-shek , who turned them over to the National Palace Museum . Consorts and Issue: SN 1054 SN 1054 is a supernova that was first observed on c.  10 July  [ O.S. c.  4 July ] 1054, and remained visible until c.  12 April  [ O.S. c.  6 April ] 1056. The event

8366-413: Was often placed in the hands of his third wife, Empress Liu . Emperor Zhenzong's reign was noted for the consolidation of power and the strengthening of the Song Empire. The empire prospered, and its military might was further reinforced. However, it would also mark the beginning of a foreign policy towards the Khitan -led Liao dynasty in the north that would ultimately result in humiliation. In 1004,

8460-621: Was recorded in contemporary Chinese astronomy , and references to it are also found in a later (13th-century) Japanese document, and in a document from the Islamic world . Furthermore, there are a number of proposed references from European sources recorded in the 15th century, as well as a pictograph associated with the Ancestral Puebloan culture found near the Peñasco Blanco site in New Mexico, United States. The pyramids at Cahokia in

8554-404: Was reddish white. Altogether visible for 23 days. The Song Shi is the official annals of the Song dynasty. Chapter 12 mentions the guest star, not its appearance but rather the moment of its disappearance. The corresponding entry dated 6 April 1056 indicates: Jiayou era, first year, third lunar month, xinwei day, the director of the Office of Astronomy reported during the fifth lunar month of

8648-579: Was suggested (without proof) by A. Breen and D. McCarthy in 1995 and proved very convincingly by D. A. Green et F. R. Stephenson (2003). The term "stand on guard" obviously signifies a proximity between the two stars, but also means a general orientation: a guest star "standing on guard" for a fixed star is systematically located below it. In order to support this theory, Green and Stephenson investigated other entries in Song Shi , which also includes reference to "standing on guard". They selected entries relating to conjunctions betweens

8742-404: Was the remains of the explosion which was observed by Chinese astronomers. Hubble's comment remained relatively unknown as the physical phenomenon of the explosion was not known at the time. Eleven years later, when the fact that supernovae are very bright phenomena was highlighted by Walter Baade and Fritz Zwicky and when their nature was suggested by Zwicky, Nicholas Mayall proposed that

8836-492: Was the third emperor of the Song dynasty of China. He reigned from 997 to his death in 1022. His personal name was originally Zhao Dechang , but was changed to Zhao Yuanxiu in 983, Zhao Yuankan in 986, and finally Zhao Heng in 995. He was the third son of his predecessor, Emperor Taizong , and was succeeded by his sixth son, Emperor Renzong at the end of his reign. From 1020 he was seriously ill, but retained power despite this. Because of his illness, day-to-day rule of China

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