The Moon in Islamic Astronomy
With Dr. Ingrid Hehmeyer

Date: Thu, Apr 11, 2019 01:00PM
Price: Free with Museum Admission

Join Ryerson University professor Dr. Ingrid Hehmeyer to learn about the moon’s role in Islamic astronomy. This talk will cover Islam’s lunar calendar, medieval research on the moon’s motion, and a case study from Yemen where until the 1960s water allocation was timed based on the moon’s path against the background of the fixed stars. Dr. Ingrid Hehmeyer offers you a rich understanding of humanity’s relationship with our nearest celestial neighbour.

Bio:

Dr. Ingrid Hehmeyer, Associate Professor in the History of Science and Technology at Ryerson University, is an agricultural engineer who specializes in human-environmental relationships in the arid regions of ancient and medieval Arabia. Her current research focuses on the history of water technology in medieval Yemen, which involves a study of the methods of astronomical timekeeping used for allocating water. Her second area of research is the history of the medical sciences in the Islamic world. As a licensed pharmacist, she is interested in the use of medicinal substances and their manufacture.