A team of international researchers say they've uncovered new data on the world's first recorded solar eclipse using a surprising source — ancient Chinese texts. These findings could help us understand more about the progression of the Earth's rotation through the centuries.
The eclipse in question took place on July 17, 709 BCE, according to a chronicle titled "Spring and Autumn Annals." The caveat here is that this record was compiled around two or three centuries after the eclipse happened. The chronicle comes from the court of Lu Duchy, a vassal state that existed during the Zhou dynasty.
