hankyoreh

A view of Gwansanggam Gwancheondae

When a star like the sun reaches the end of its life, it explodes in a burst of light, which is called a nova when it is observed. Stars that are much bigger than the sun have much bigger explosions as well, and these are the extremely bright stars known as supernovas. But supernovas are so rare that the last time one was observed with the naked eye in our galaxy was the 17th century. This was the star that suddenly appeared in the night sky in Oct. 1604, shining almost as bright as Venus for around 50 days. Because this supernova was carefully observed and studied by the well-known German astronomer Johannes Kepler, it is known in global astronomical circles as Kepler's Supernova.

But the most detailed observations about Kepler’s Supernova that survive today are actually in Korea, found in the Annals of the Joseon Dynasty. The annals of King Seonjo contain a meticulous record of observations of this supernova over the course of more than seven months in 1604, the 37th year of Seonjo’s reign. Because the records found in the annals begin four days before Kepler’s and because of their great level of detail, they are currently regarded as the primary research source for Kepler’s Supernova by the world’s astronomers. In China and South Korea, stars that appeared suddenly rather than being permanent features of the night sky were known as gaekseong, literally meaning “visiting or wandering stars.” In contemporary terms, these gaekseong correspond to cosmic entities such as comets, novas, supernovas, and variable stars.

an astronomical observatory in Seoul as it appeared in the 1930s from Will Carl Rufus’ book

Korea’s traditional astronomy was first introduced to the West in a systematic way in 1936. Prior to this, Will Carl Rufus, a math and astronomy teacher at Pyongyang Theological Seminary since 1907, had periodically published the results of his research into Korea’s traditional astronomy with the Korea Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society. He eventually compiled these separate papers into an English-language book titled “Korean Astronomy,” which he published in 1936. This book describes astronomy in every period and dynasty of Korean history, from the days of Dangun and Gija to the Three Kingdoms Period of Goguryeo, Shilla and Baekje; the Goryeo Dynasty; and the Joseon Dynasty. The Joseon Dynasty is described in particular detail, and this section takes up over half the book. Kepler’s Supernova is also mentioned by Rufus, who quotes the records as saying that the brightness of the yellow-red star changed and gradually darkened.

Born in 1876, Rufus was a Christian, and an astronomer and a mathematician, who studied at Albion College and the University of Michigan in the US. An obituary published in Popular Astronomy after his death in 1946 also described him as a philosopher, poet and educator. After coming to Korea as a missionary, he taught math and astronomy at Pyongyang Theological Seminary and Yeonhui College (now Yonsei University). One of his students at this time was Lee Won-cheol, who would later study in the US and become the first Korean to receive a Doctor of Science. Lee also studied at Albion College and the University of Michigan, just like Rufus, and in 1926, he received a Sc.D. in astronomy at the University of Michigan, with Rufus as his advisor.

After working as a missionary and educator, Rufus returned to the US in 1917 for his children’s education and worked at the University of Michigan as a professor of astronomy until he retired. His research into China and Korea’s traditional astronomy made him one of the rare experts in this area, and he was also a historian of science who helped set up the first courses in the history of astronomy at American universities.

“Korean Astronomy.” Gwancheondae is currently located on the grounds of the main office of Hyundai Engineering and Construction in Seoul’s Gye neighborhood.

Nearly as interesting as the main text of “Korean Astronomy” is the rich supplemental material at the back of the book. This includes several black-and-white photographs that Rufus was able to obtain in the 1930s. Two of the most striking of these photographs show Chamseongdan, an altar on Mani Mountain on Ganghwa Island, and Gwansanggam Gwancheondae, an astronomical observatory in Seoul.

In the photos, Chamseongdan can be seen as it was before being developed into a tourist destination, while Gwancheondae curiously abuts a wall on the campus of Whimoon Normal High School. Gwancheondae is currently located on the grounds of the main office of Hyundai Engineering and Construction in Seoul’s Gye neighborhood.

The supplementary material also includes a number of tables, the first of which is the 28 traditional constellations in the Asian zodiac. This table lists the gods of the four cardinal directions (blue dragon in the east, black tortoise in the north, white tiger in the west and red bird in the south) and seven constellations for each of these gods, matching them with Western constellations. The table also lists what animals are signified by each of these constellations and marks the ones that are included in the “twelve earthly branches” (that is, the zodiac animals).

While many Koreans today are not even aware that there were separate constellations in Asia, they would have been common knowledge for Koreans when Rufus was writing this book just over 80 years ago.

By Park Sang-joon, President of Seoul SF Archive

Please direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]