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Sosigenes (astronomer) facts for kids

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Sosigenes
Σωσιγένης
Nationality Greek
Known for Consulted by Julius Caesar for the design of the Julian calendar
Scientific career
Fields Astronomy

Sosigenes (Greek: Σωσιγένης) was an Ancient Greek astronomer. He lived around the 1st century BC. He is famous for helping Julius Caesar create the Julian calendar. This calendar was a big step in how people tracked time.

Who Was Sosigenes?

We don't know much about Sosigenes. Most of what we know comes from a book called Natural History. This book was written by Pliny the Elder, a Roman writer.

Pliny wrote that Julius Caesar asked Sosigenes for help. Caesar wanted to fix the old Roman calendar. He wanted to make it match the sun's path better. Sosigenes was a skilled astronomer who helped Caesar achieve this.

Sosigenes also studied the planet Mercury. He observed how Mercury moves around the sun. He noted that Mercury always appears close to the sun in the sky. It never moves more than 22 degrees away from it.

The Julian calendar began in 46 BC. That first year was very long, lasting 445 days. This was done to correct many errors in the old Roman calendar.

Sosigenes in Stories and Movies

For a long time, some people called him "Sosigenes of Alexandria." This was to tell him apart from others with the same name. However, no ancient writings say he was from Alexandria. This idea might have come from combining two facts. One was that Caesar's calendar reform used "Egyptian teachings." The other was that Sosigenes helped with the calendar.

The first time "Sosigenes of Alexandria" was mentioned was in a book from 1739.

Sosigenes was also shown in the 1963 movie Cleopatra. In the movie, he was played by Hume Cronyn. The movie's story about him is mostly made up. In the film, he is Cleopatra's teacher and advisor. He even becomes her messenger to Rome. Later, he is killed by Octavian in the Roman Forum. This event starts a war against Egypt. None of these things actually happened in history. They were created just for the movie.

See also

  • Acoreus

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Sosígenes para niños

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