An international group of researchers has reexamined the earliest written account of a total solar eclipse, dating back to 709 BCE, by combining historical geography and modern astronomy.

Their study used records from Qufu, the ancient Chinese capital of the Lu Duchy, to analyze how the eclipse unfolded and to extract new data about Earth’s changing rotation speed.

The team focused on a record from the “Spring and Autumn Annals,” compiled two to three centuries after the event, which simply states, "the Sun was totally eclipsed." This account is supported by a later addendum found in the 'Hanshu' (Book of Han), written seven centuries after the eclipse, that describes the Sun as "completely yellow above and below."

Lead author Hisashi Hayakawa explained, "What makes this record special

See Full Page