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Sun Kwok

Our Place in the Universe - II

The Scientific Approach to Discovery
1st ed. 2021
Sun Kwok
Department of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences, University of
British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada

ISBN 978-3-030-80259-2 e-ISBN 978-3-030-80260-8

https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-80260-8

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021

This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved by the

Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned,
specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations,
recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other
physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval,
electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar
methodology now known or hereafter developed.

The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks,

service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the
absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the
relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general
use.

The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the
advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate
at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or the
editors give a warranty, expressed or implied, with respect to the
material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have
been made. The publisher remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional
claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Cover illustration: Abell 2151 cluster of galaxies. Image taken with the
MegaCam camera on the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope. Credits:
CFHT/Coelum - J.-.C. Cuillandre & G. Anselmi

This Springer imprint is published by the registered company Springer

Nature Switzerland AG
The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham,
Switzerland
Preface
This is the second volume of the book Our Place in the Universe. The
first volume Understanding Fundamental Astronomy from Ancient
Discoveries covers the development of astronomy from ancient times to
Newton. The book uses the historical development of astronomy to
illustrate the process of rational reasoning and its effect on philosophy,
religion, and society. This volume follows this theme and discusses the
development of astronomy after Newton, and the parallel evolution of
ideas in geology and biology. While the effect of science on technology
is well known, the effects of science on how we see ourselves and our
world are much less appreciated. The aim of this book is to
demonstrate how science motivated intellectual thought and had a
major impact on the social development of humans throughout history.
Specifically, we use the examples in the development of astronomy to
illustrate the process of science, and the effects of evolution in science
on our perception of the Universe and on ourselves.
In our educational system, science is often presented to our
students as a series of facts. In reality, science is about the process of
rational thinking and creativity. What we consider to be the truth is
constantly evolving and has certainly changed greatly over the history
of humankind. The essence of science is not so much about the current
view of our world, but how we changed from one set of views to
another. This book is not about the outcome but the process.
As an example, every student knows that the Earth revolves around
the Sun. They accept the heliocentric theory as a fact because this was
told to them by an authority. However, in my experience, almost no one
could cite a single piece of direct evidence for the Earth going around
the Sun. As we will see in Chaps. 2 and 3 of this book, direct
confirmation of the heliocentric theory is not trivial and only came two
hundred years after Copernicus. The fact that this is not emphasized in
our teaching of science is indeed worrying. We are asking our students
to accept certain facts of science without telling them the tortuous
process by which we came to that conclusion. The goal of this book is to
show how we know.
Science is often presented as “logical” and the development of
science is taught in textbooks as one success after another. The version
of scientific development presented is often a sanitized version, where
only successes are mentioned. In fact, there have been many (now
forgotten) failures and misconceptions that were very popular at the
time. When the correct theories came along, they were often resisted,
ridiculed, or ignored by the contemporary authorities. If we are
unaware of such struggles, we are likely to repeat the same mistakes.
Some may ask: why teach theories that we know to be wrong? The
fact is that many of those theories were held up as the truth at the time.
Only by tracing the process of discovery can we understand how
science works. Students will be able to see current scientific theories in
a more critical light and be able to more objectively assess information
given to us by the media or authorities today. For scientists, if they are
not aware of mistakes made in the past, they may find themselves
making similar mistakes in their research now.
This book is based on a course designed for the Common Core
Program of the University of Hong Kong (HKU). The HKU Common Core
courses are not based on a specific discipline and are designed to help
students develop broader perspectives and abilities to critically assess
complex issues. I developed this course and taught it from 2010 to
2018. Every year, the class contained about 120 students from all
faculties of the university, including architecture, arts, business and
economics, dentistry, education, engineering, law, medicine, science,
and social sciences. Because of the students’ diverse background, no
mathematical derivations or calculations were used. The students were,
however, expected to understand qualitative concepts, develop
geometric visualizations, and perform logical deductions.
At the end of each chapter are some discussion topics that can be
used in tutorial sessions or be assigned as essay topics. These questions
are designed to motivate students to think beyond the class materials
and explore implications of the topics covered. Often these questions
have no right or wrong answers and are open-ended to encourage
creative thinking.
Jargons are great obstacles to learning. In this book, I try to
minimize the use of jargons as much as possible and some technical
terms are replaced by simple words with similar meaning. Some
concepts have precise definitions, and the use of technical terms is
unavoidable. All definitions are presented in the Glossary.
 For more technical readers, I have added some optional
mathematics and physics in this book, with additional materials
presented in the Appendices. Non-mathematical readers can skip these
parts. To focus on the evolution of concepts, I have deliberately omitted
certain details. Readers who wish a more in-depth understanding of
certain topics should consult the respective textbooks.
Every year, students ask me whether they will be handicapped by
their lack of previous knowledge of physics and astronomy. In fact, the
reverse is true. Students in science are told all the modern notions but
usually have often never learned how we arrived at those conclusions.
In this book, we try to retrace historical steps to find out how we got to
these conclusions.
In addition to lectures, we had weekly tutorials, quizzes,
assignments, computer laboratory exercises, a planetarium show, and
exams. For the first half of the course, a planetarium show was
developed to illustrate the celestial motions observed in different parts
of the world and at different times in history. The laboratory exercises
were based on computer software, allowing students to have first-hand
experience viewing and recording data from simulated observations.
The assessments were designed to test whether the students had
understood the course materials, could connect material from different
parts of the course, had achieved some degree of synthesis, and could
apply the acquired knowledge to new situations.
My hope is to help students develop their sense of curiosity and
acquire the confidence to ask questions and challenge assumptions.
Modern university students should be knowledgeable about our world
and aware of how Nature works. From the historical development of
science, I hope students will learn to think analytically and
quantitatively, keep an open mind, and remain independent from public
opinion. They should be able to make rational judgments on the
complicated issues facing society today and rise above the ignorance
and prejudice that are prevalent in society. These ideas are reflected in
my article “Science Education in the 21st Century” published in Nature
Astronomy, Vol. 2, p. 530–533 (2018).
For instructors, the two books Our Place in the Universe:
Understanding Fundamental Astronomy from Ancient Discoveries and
Our Place in the Universe: The Scientific Approach to Discovery can serve
as textbooks for two one-semester general education courses. The first
course can be taught independently, but it is advisable that students
take the first course before taking the second course.
In the later chapters of this book, I have included some recent
research discoveries in astrobiology. I am privileged to have
contributed to research in this field during these exciting times. I am
also grateful for the opportunity to work with and learn from many
contemporary pioneers in this field. I would like to express my sincere
appreciation to them, although many of their names are not specifically
mentioned in this book.
Over the eight years that I taught the course while serving as Dean
of Science, I was ably assisted by lecturers/instructors Tim
Wotherspoon, Jason Pun, Anisia Tang, and Sze Leung Cheung. I thank
Gray Kochhar-Lindgren, Director of the HKU Common Core Program,
for his unyielding support.
Bruce Hrivnak and Anisia Tang provided helpful comments on an
earlier draft. I thank Ramon Khanna, my editor at Springer, for
encouraging me to publish this book. Clara Wang skillfully drew many
of the illustrations in this book.
I first became interested in the subject of the history of science
during my second year of undergraduate study at McMaster University,
where Prof. Bertram Brockhouse (Nobel Prize in Physics, 1994)
introduced me to the subject. His teaching made me realize that physics
is more than just mechanical calculations; it is a subject with
philosophical and social implications as well.
Sun Kwok
Vancouver, BC, Canada
Prologue
天地玄黃, 宇宙洪荒。日月盈昃, 辰宿列張。
寒來暑往, 秋收冬藏。閏餘成歲, 律呂調陽。
千字文 周興嗣

In the beginning, there was the black heaven and the yellow
earth. The Universe was vast and without limit. The Sun rises
and sets, the Moon goes through phases, and the stars spread
over distinct constellations in the sky. The warm and cold
seasons come and go, while we harvest in the fall and store our
grains for the winter. A year is composed of an uneven number
of months, and harmony of music governs the cosmos.
First eight verses from the Thousand Character Essay by
Zhou Xing Si (470–521 A.D.), translated from Chinese.

Zhou, an official in the Court of the Liang Dynasty, was asked by the
Emperor Wu 梁武帝 (reigned 502–549 A.D.) to arrange a set of 1,000
characters into an essay for the education of the young princes. He
composed a rhymed essay of 250 four-character verses where each
character was used only once. From the sixth century to the early
twentieth century, this essay was commonly used as a primary text to
teach young children the Chinese characters.
The essay begins with eight verses that express humans’ desire to
understand the Universe and their appreciation for the celestial objects’
orderly movements. As Zhou describes it, people also recognize that
observations of the Sun, Moon, and stars have led to the development of
calendars and that the structure of the Universe can be understood by
theoretical models.
These verses exemplify the yearning for knowledge of our place in
the Universe, which is shared by all ancient cultures. Through tireless
observations, our ancestors on different continents observed the
behavior of the Sun, Moon, planets, and the stars. They were aware that
these patterns were regular, but by no means simple. Although the data
collected were similar across cultures, the interpretations of the
celestial patterns differed. These interpretations were incorporated
into social, religious, and philosophical structures. Throughout history,
the evolution of our models of the Universe led to changes in these
structures. This book is an attempt to tell the story of the evolution of
astronomical development over two millennia and its effect on our
society.
Contents
1 From Copernicus to Enlightenment
1.​1 A Spherical Earth
1.​2 The First Cosmological Models
1.​3 Uneven Movements of the Sun and the Planets
1.​4 The Copernican Model
1.​5 Immutability of the Heavens
1.​6 A Physical Universe
1.​7 Social Implications of the Post-Renaissance Model of the
Universe
2 Empirical Evidence for the Heliocentric Model
2.​1 Empirical Evidence for the Rotation of the Earth
2.​2 Finite Speed of Light
2.​3 Search for Empirical Proof that the Earth Revolves Around
the Sun
2.​4 Shift of Stellar Position as the Result of Orbital Motion of
the Earth
2.​5 The Third Proof of the Earth’s Revolution Around the Sun
2.​6 A Long Journey from Theory to Confirmation
3 Resolution of the Theoretical Objections to the Heliocentric
Theory
3.​1 The Concept of Inertia
3.​2 Why We Do Not Feel We Are Moving Around the Sun?​
3.​3 Why We Do Not Feel the Rotation of the Earth?​
3.​4 Evolution to a True Heliocentric Model
3.​5 Artificial Satellites and Interplanetary Travel
3.​6 Final Vindication of Copernicus
 3.​7 A Turning Point in Our View of the Universe
4 Size of the Solar System
4.​1 How Fast Is Heaven Turning?​
4.​2 No More Points Of Light
4.​3 How Far Are the Planets?​
4.​4 How Far Away Is the Sun?​
4.​5 A Changing Perception of the Size of the Solar System
5 Celestial Navigation and Exploration of the Heavens
5.​1 The Longitude Problem
5.​2 Stars Are Moving
5.​3 The Solar System Is Moving
5.​4 Unexpected Dividends
5.​5 Cosmological Implications
6 New Members of the Solar System
6.​1 The Origin of Comets
6.​2 Discovery of Uranus
6.​3 Prediction of Neptune
6.​4 Search for Vulcan
6.​5 Search for Planet X
6.​6 Lesson to Be Learned
7 Is the Sun a Star?​
7.​1 Brightness Drop-Off with Distance
7.​2 Distance to Stars
7.​3 Are All Stars the Same?​
7.​4 Demotion of the Sun
8 A New Way of Thinking
 8.​1 The Scientific Method
8.​2 Examples of Scientific Methods at Work
8.​3 What Is a Good Scientific Theory?​
8.​4 How Do We Know that a Theory Is in Trouble?​
8.​5 What Is Not a Scientific Question?​
8.​6 Application of the Scientific Method to Other Disciplines
8.​7 Limitations of Science
9 What Are Stars Made of?​
9.​1 Color of Sunlight and Physical Objects
9.​2 Dark Lines in the Sun
9.​3 Does the Sun Contain the Same Elements as Earth?​
9.​4 A New Element in the Sky
9.​5 The Mystery of Nebulium
9.​6 The Beginning of Astrophysics
9.​7 Different Kinds of Stars
9.​8 Unification of Matter in Heaven and on Earth
10 Origin of the Solar System
10.​1 Formation of the Solar System
10.​2 Extrasolar Planetary Systems
10.​3 The Outer Solar System
10.​4 The Question of Origins
11 The Plurality of Worlds
11.​1 What Is the Milky Way?​
11.​2 Shape of the Milky Way
11.​3 A Larger Universe
11.​4 The Distance Problem
 11.​5 Removal of the Sun from the Center of the Milky Way
11.​6 Philosophical Implications
12 The Nature of Nebulae
12.​1 Discovery of Nonstellar Objects
12.​2 The Mystery of Spiral Nebulae
12.​3 Island Universes or Gaseous Nebulae?​
12.​4 The Resolution
12.​5 Sun’s Motion in the Milky Way
12.​6 How Can Experts Be Wrong?​
12.​7 Evolution of Our Understanding of the Universe
13 Are All Motions Relative?​
13.​1 Principle of Relativity
13.​2 The Need for a Fictitious Force
13.​3 We Can Tell the Earth Is Rotating Without Looking Outside
13.​4 Origin of the Inertial Force
13.​5 Mathematical Formulation of the Principle of Relativity
13.​6 Einstein’s Theory of Gravity
13.​7 No More Action at a Distance
14 The Nature of Light and Matter
14.​1 Fundamental Elements of Terrestrial Matter
14.​2 Building Blocks of Matter
14.​3 The Confusion between Light and Heat
14.​4 Expansion of the Concept of Color
14.​5 Heat and Temperature
14.​6 Everything Shines
14.​7 The Search for Ether
 14.​8 Quantum Theory of Light and Matter
14.​9 Science and Utility
15 The Human–Star Connection
15.​1 What Powers the Sun?​
15.​2 Source of the Sun’s Energy
15.​3 Direct Confirmation of Nuclear Fusion in the Sun
15.​4 The Solar Terrestrial Connection
15.​5 Origin of Chemical Elements
15.​6 Chemical Composition of the Human Body
15.​7 Universality of Physics and Chemistry
16 Is the Universe Finite?​
16.​1 Looking Back into the Past
16.​2 Expansion of the Universe
16.​3 Large-Scale Structure of the Universe
16.​4 The Beginning of Time
16.​5 An Evolving Universe
17 Early History of the Earth
17.​1 Methods of Age Determination
17.​2 Radioactive Dating
17.​3 A Physical Connection between Heaven and Earth
17.​4 External Bombardment of the Early Earth
17.​5 Formation of the Moon
17.​6 Formation of the Ocean and the Atmosphere
17.​7 The Complex History of the Earth
18 Common Ancestors
18.​1 The Evolution of Living Species
 18.​2 Life Beyond What We Can See
18.​3 A New Realm of Life
18.​4 The Tree of Life
18.​5 Social Implications of Darwinism
19 Origin of Life
19.​1 Spontaneous Generation
19.​2 Panspermia:​Life from Elsewhere
19.​3 Distinction Between Living and Non-living
19.​4 Abiogenesis:​A Chemical Origin of Life
19.​5 Philosophy Guiding Science
19.​6 Remaining Questions
20 Complexity in the Universe
20.​1 Molecules and Solids in the Interstellar Medium
20.​2 Minerals in Space
20.​3 The Discovery of Extraterrestrial​Organics
20.​4 Abiotic Synthesis of Organics
20.​5 Unsolved Mysteries
20.​6 Extending the Frontiers of Exploration
21 Evolution of the Earth Through the Ages
21.​1 The Continents Are Moving
21.​2 The Oxygen Evolution
21.​3 Life Explosion
21.​4 Extinction Events
21.​5 Emergence of Humans
21.​6 Lessons from the History of Life on Earth
22 Climate Changes Through the Ages
 22.​1 Climate Cycles
22.​2 The Warm Earth
22.​3 Human-induced Climate Change
22.​4 Effects of Climate on Society
22.​5 Balance Between Development and Conservation
23 The Link Between Stars and Life on Earth
23.​1 Lifetimes of Stars
23.​2 Death of the Sun
23.​3 The Final Fate of Stars
23.​4 Stellar Synthesis of Complex Organics
23.​5 Birth of New Stars and Planetary Systems from Stellar
Debris
23.​6 External Delivery of Organics to Earth and Their Effects on
the Origin of Life
23.​7 The Future of the Human Species
24 Life on Other Worlds
24.​1 Conditions for Life
24.​2 Search for Life in the Solar System
24.​3 Search for Signs of Life on Other Planets in the Galaxy
24.​4 Search for Extraterrestrial​Intelligence
24.​5 Direct Contact with Alien Life
24.​6 Did Aliens Visit the Earth?​
24.​7 Different Paths of Scientific Development among Alien
Civilizations
24.​8 The Social Implication of Discovery of Extraterrestrial​Life
24.​9 Ethical Issues of Planetary Exploration and Engineering
24.​10 Nonbiological Alien Life
25 Our Place in the Universe
25.​1 Changing Spatial Scale of the Universe
25.​2 On the Temporal Scale
25.​3 On the Relative Scale
25.​4 Constitution of Matter
25.​5 The Role of Humans in the Universe
25.​6 Looking into the Future by Learning from the Past
26 The Common Links in Our Journey
26.​1 A 300-year Success Story
26.​2 The Interdisciplinar​y Nature of Science
26.​3 The Path to Discovery
26.​4 The Human Aspects of Science
26.​5 How Science Should Be Taught?​
26.​6 How Science Is Done
26.​7 The Ethics of Science
26.​8 Science and Technology
26.​9 Science and Society
26.​10 The Hidden Assumptions Behind Modern Science
26.​11 Is There a Limit to Science?​
Appendix I.​Brightest Stars in the Sky
Appendix II.​Units of Measurement
Appendix III.​Astronomical Measurements
Appendix IV.​Photometric Method to Estimate the Distances of
Stars
Appendix V.​Mass of the Milky Way
Appendix VI.​Examples of Inertial Forces
Appendix VII.​Astronomy from Other Planetary Systems
Review Exercises
Glossary
Further Reading
Index
List of Figures
Fig.​1.​1 The first cosmological model of a flat Earth and a spherical sky

Fig.​1.​2 Changing horizon on a spherical Earth

Fig.​1.​3 The two-sphere Universe model

Fig.​1.​4 A model of an armillary sphere

Fig.​1.​5 The use of eccentric, epicycle, and equant in Ptolemy’s model of

planetary motion

Fig.​1.​6 Schematic diagram of Ptolemy’s cosmological model

Fig.​2.​1 A schematic drawing of the Tychonic system

Fig.​2.​2 Illustration of the Coriolis force

Fig.​2.​3 Foucault’s pendulum

Fig.​2.​4 Oblateness of the Earth

Fig.​2.​5 A schematic diagram illustrating the method used by Rømer to

measure the speed of light
Fig.​2.​6 A schematic diagram illustrating the measurement of stellar
parallax

Fig.​2.​7 A schematic diagram illustrating the aberration of starlight

Fig.​3.​1 A merry-go-round

Fig.​3.​2 Copernicus’s model of planetary motion

Fig.​3.​3 Kepler’s law of planetary motion

Fig.​3.​4 Artificial satellites

Fig.​3.​5 Space flight to Mars

Fig.​3.​6 “Empedocles Breaks through the Crystal Spheres” is a wood

engraving by an unknown artist

Fig.​4.​1 Relationship between distance and angular size

Fig.​4.​2 Huygens's method to determine the Earth-Sun distance

Fig.​4.​3 The method of triangulation

Fig.​4.​4 Transit of Venus on June 6, 2012

Fig.​4.​5 The change of Earth-Sun distance over history (900–2000 A.​D.​)

Fig.​5.​1 World map based on the work of Ptolemy

Fig.​5.​2 Paths of stars at different latitudes

Fig.​5.​3 Celestial navigation

Fig.​5.​4 Portuguese explorations

Fig.​5.​5 A sextant is used to measure the altitude of celestial objects

above the horizon

Fig.​5.​6 The Big Dipper as seen in 50,000 B.​C.​and 2020 A.​D.​

Fig.​5.​7 The effect of solar motion on the proper motions of stars

Fig.​6.​1 An artist’s depiction of the comet of 1577 seen over Prague

Fig.​6.​2 Conic sections

Fig.​6.​3 Halley’s Comet in 1066 depicted in the Bayeux Tapestry

Fig.​6.​4 A schematic drawing illustrating the advance of the perihelion

of Mercury

Fig.​7.​1 Schematic diagram illustrating the photometric method for

stellar distance determination

Fig.​9.​1 Dark lines in the solar spectrum

Fig.​9.​2 Discovery of emission line spectrum in stars

Fig.​9.​3 Comparison between the continuous spectrum of white

sunlight and the emission line spectrum of a nebula

Fig.​10.​1 A schematic drawing illustrating how the terrestrial planets

were formed

Fig.​10.​2 Detection of extrasolar planets using the radial velocity

method

Fig.​10.​3 A schematic illustration of a planetary transit

Fig.​10.​4 A schematic drawing of the Kuiper Belt and the Oort Cloud

Fig.​11.​1 The Milky Way

Fig.​11.​2 The galactic plane in the celestial sphere

Fig.​11.​3 View of the Milky Way from Honolulu, Hawaii, USA

Fig.​11.​4 View of the Milky Way from Melbourne, Australia

Fig.​11.​5 Model of the Milky Way by Thomas Wright

Fig.​11.​6 Distribution of stars as mapped by Herschel

Fig.​11.​7 Kapteyn’s model of the Milky Way has the Sun at its center

Fig.​11.​8 Globular cluster M13

Fig.​11.​9 A map of the distribution of globular clusters projected on the

plane of the Milky Way

Fig.​12.​1 Messier’s drawing of M31, the Andromeda Nebula

Fig.​12.​2 Drawing of M51 as sketched by Lord Rosse as seen from his

72-inch telescope in 1849

Fig.​12.​3 Modern image of the spiral galaxy NGC 4535

Fig.​12.​4 A schematic diagram of the structure of the Milky Way

Fig.​12.​5 An example of a spiral galaxy viewed sideways

Fig.​13.​1 Principle of relativity

Fig.​13.​2 Pendulum at the North Pole

Fig.​13.​3 Comparison between the Ptolemaic (left) and Copernican

(right) cosmologies

Fig.​13.​4 The shortest path between two points on a sphere is a great

circle

Fig.​13.​5 Bending of starlight through curvature of space

Fig.​14.​1 The Periodic Table

Fig.​14.​2 Examples of knots and links illustrating Lord Kelvin’s knotted

vortex theory of atoms

Fig.​14.​3 A simplified schematic drawing of the Bohr atom

Fig.​14.​4 The electromagnetic spectrum

Fig.​14.​5 The Planck radiation law

Fig.​16.​1 The velocity–distance relationship as originally published by

Hubble

Fig.​16.​2 The balloon analogy of an expanding universe

Fig.​16.​3 Abell 2151 cluster of galaxies

Fig.​16.​4 A schematic diagram illustrating the possible geometries of

the Universe

Fig.​16.​5 A schematic diagram illustrating how we can determine the

geometry of the Universe

Fig.​17.​1 Method of tree-ring dating

Fig.​17.​2 Schematic picture of radioactive decay

Fig.​17.​3 Engraving showing the 1833 Leonid meteor shower

Fig.​17.​4 Comets as the cause of meteor showers

Fig.​17.​5 Map of some of the largest impact basins on the Moon with
diameters >300 km

Fig.​17.​6 Cause of the tides

Fig.​17.​7 Heavy bombardment during the early history of the Earth

Fig.​18.​1 Voyage of the Beagle from December 27, 1831, to October 2,

1836

Fig.​18.​2 Gorillas, chimpanzees, and humans branched off the tree of life
at different times in the past

Fig.​18.​3 The tree of life based on ribosomal RNA sequence data

Fig.​19.​1 Pasteur’s experiment to disprove spontaneous generation

Fig.​19.​2 A schematic drawing of the double helix structure of the DNA

molecule

Fig.​19.​3 The Miller-Urey experiment

Fig.​20.​1 Schematic diagram illustrating the rotation, stretching, and

bending motion of molecules
Fig.​20.​2 An example of a spectrum of the Galactic Center in the
millimeter-wave region

Fig. 20.3 Infrared spectra of two red giants as observed by the Infrared
Astronomical Satellite Low-Resolution Spectrometer

Fig.​20.​4 The chemical structure of benzene

Fig.​20.​5 The unidentified infrared emissions bands were first detected

in the planetary nebula NGC 7027 in the constellation of Cygnus

Fig.​21.​1 The ring of fire

Fig.​21.​2 A conceptual map of the supercontinent Pangaea

Fig.​21.​3 The Earth has seven major tectonic plates and more minor
ones

Fig.​21.​4 Change in the complexity of living organisms over the history

of the Earth

Fig.​21.​5 The five extinction events since the Cambrian period

Fig.​21.​6 An artistic perception of an asteroid impact

Fig.​21.​7 A schematic diagram illustrating the routes of human
migration out of Africa based on genome analysis

Fig.​21.​8 Geological and biological timeline of the history of the Earth

Fig.​22.​1 Temperature variation of the Earth in recent history as

determined from Antarctic ice cores

Fig.​22.​2 Schematic illustrations of the three effects contributing to the

Milankovitch cycles

Fig.​22.​3 Greenhouse effect

Fig. 22.4 Global atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations (CO2) in

parts per million (ppm) for the past 800,000 years

Fig.​23.​1 Stars on the main sequence

Fig.​23.​2 A schematic diagram illustrating the structure of an

asymptotic giant branch star

Fig.​23.​3 NGC 6302 in the constellation of Scorpius is one of about 4000

known planetary nebulae in the Milky Way galaxy

Fig.​23.​4 A schematic diagram showing the life cycle of a solar-like star

Fig.​23.​5 Electron microscope image of a pre-solar silicon carbide (SiC)
grain

Fig.​23.​6 A cartoon illustrating the manufacturing of organic

compounds in planetary nebulae and their ejection into interstellar
space

Fig. 24.1 An artist’s rendition of the surface of Titan based on data

obtained from the Cassini mission

Fig.​24.​2 The spectrum of the Earth’s atmosphere and clouds carry

signatures of life

Fig.​24.​3 Earthshine

Fig.​24.​4 A schematic drawing illustrating how the atmospheric

spectrum of an extrasolar planet can be observed during planetary
transit

Fig.​24.​5 Gauss’s proposal for extraterrestrial​communication

Fig.​24.​6 A proposal by von Littrow to send signals to intelligent

extraterrestrial​s on Mars

Fig.​26.​1 A schematic diagram illustrating the change in rotational

velocity in a typical spiral galaxy
List of Tables
Table 4.​1 Minimum and maximum angular sizes of planets

Table 17.​1 Examples of radioactive clocks

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021
S. Kwok, Our Place in the Universe - II
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-80260-8_1

1. From Copernicus to Enlightenment

Sun Kwok1
(1) Department of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences, University
of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada

As soon as humans developed a sense of awareness of their

surroundings, they realized that their lives are governed by daily cycles
of day and night and annual cycles of seasons. They also made the
association that these cycles are related to the Sun. For practical and
religious reasons, they became keen observers of the heavens. Our
ancestors were in awe not only of the existence of celestial objects – the
Sun, the Moon, and the stars – but also of the fact that they all move.
Not only do they move, but they also do so in regular patterns. The Sun,
the Moon, and the stars rise day after day without fail. After the Sun
sets and the Earth is covered in darkness, stars can be seen to rise from
the eastern horizon, move across the sky, and set in the opposite
horizon. The existence of these repeated patterns was believed to be a
sign of divine governance and a source of messages from the gods.
Motivated by the desire to decipher the hidden meaning of these
patterns, our ancestors observed the movement of celestial objects
with great diligence.
They soon learned that these patterns, although regular, were
complicated. The Sun rises at different times and rises to different
heights each day. The length of daylight varies through the year, with
longer days in summer and shorter days in winter. When the Sun is
highest in the sky, a stick planted vertically on the ground always casts
its shadow in the same direction, which is referred to as “north.”1 The
existence of this special direction allowed our ancestors to designate
four directions: south being opposite to north, and east and west
perpendicular to the line of north and south. Although the Sun rises in
the general eastern direction, the exact location of sunrise varies each
day. The Sun rises in more northerly directions in the summer and in
more southernly directions in the winter. As early as 3000 years ago,
ancient civilizations realized that there are four special days in a year:
summer solstice when the Sun rises in the northernmost direction,
winter solstice when the Sun rises in the southernmost direction, and
vernal and autumnal equinoxes when the Sun rises in the exact east.
Both the Sun and the stars appear to revolve around the Earth each
day, but the period of revolution of the stars is slightly shorter (by
about 4 minutes) than that of the Sun. This is manifested by stars rising
slightly earlier each night, and new stars appearing on the eastern
horizon the following night. This results in different constellations of
stars being seen at different times of the year: for example, the
constellation of Orion is seen in the winter and the constellation of
Sagittarius in the summer.
Like the Sun, the Moon also rises in the east and sets in the west.
However, unlike the Sun, the Moon changes its shape daily, going
through phases. The Moon is sometimes seen at night and sometimes
during the day, but its time of appearance is related to its phases. The
full Moon rises in the early evening and is seen only during the night,
whereas the new Moon rises in the early morning. Although the new
Moon is in the sky throughout the day, it is hard to see as it is close to
the Sun.
The Sun’s and stars’ asynchronous movements suggest that in
addition to the daily motion of the Sun, the Sun is also simultaneously
slowly moving relative to the stars over the period of a year. The daily
motion of the Sun is from east to west, but its yearly motion through
the stars is from west to east. Like the Sun, the Moon also moves
relative to the stars, but much more quickly. Instead of a year, the Moon
goes through the stars over a period of 27.3 days. This period is close
to, but not exactly the same, as the period of the phases of the Moon,
which is 29.5 days.
The Sun and the Moon are not the only objects that move relative to
the stars. Our ancestors also knew of five bright celestial objects that
move through the stars. For this reason, they are called planets, which
originated from the Greek word for wandering stars. The planets
Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn all move relative to the stars
along the same path of the Sun (called the ecliptic), but with different
periods. Like the Sun, they usually travel from west to east relative to
the stars. But most strangely, they appear to reverse directions from
time to time.
The regular patterns of motions of celestial objects provided
humans with the first motivation to understand the working of the
heavens. This cultivated the seeds for rational thinking. The first
example of abstract thinking is the development of a model of the
Universe. The fact that the Sun and the stars appear to revolve around
the Earth in circular paths led to the first cosmological model of a flat
Earth and a spherical sky. The celestial objects move from horizon to
horizon on the surface of a sphere, called the celestial sphere. The axis
upon which the stars and the Sun turns is assumed to be the pole that
holds up the canopy of the sky (Fig. 1.1).

Fig. 1.1 The first cosmological model of a flat Earth and a spherical sky. The
celestial axis around which the stars revolve is inclined with respect to the horizon
(shown in green). The north celestial pole is the only point on the celestial sphere
that does not turn. This figure corresponds to an observer located in the mid-
northern latitude

1.1 A Spherical Earth

Although the Earth appears obviously flat from our everyday
experience, there are some disconcerting observations that caused
ancient astronomers to have doubts about this perception. If we live on
a flat Earth, we would see the same stars no matter where we are.
However, some stars can only be seen from certain locations on Earth:
Canopus, the second brightest star in the sky, can be seen from
Alexandria but not from Athens. Contrary to intuitive expectations, this
polar axis around which the stars turn is not planted perpendicularly
but is inclined with respect to the horizon. This inclination angle varies
from place to place: at Athens, the polar axis is inclined 38° relative to
the horizon; in Alexandria, Egypt, it is 31°.
Around 500 B.C., Greek astronomers deduced that the Earth is
round from the shape of its shadow during lunar eclipses. Eclipses
occur at a precise time, but the hour of occurrence (as measured from
the time at noon) as recorded by observers in the east is always later
than that recorded by those in the west. The evidence for a spherical
Earth was summarized by Claudius Ptolemy (100–175) in his book
Almagest.
Using a simple stick planted on the ground and measuring the
length and angle of its shadow over the course of a day, ancient
observers could trace the exact daily paths of the Sun. Over the course
of a year, these paths vary from one day to the next. Observers at
different locations on Earth also see different apparent paths of the Sun
across the sky (Chap. 5, Vol. 1). An observer in Athens never sees the
Sun directly overhead but an observer in southern Egypt does. These
results are not compatible with the idea of a flat Earth. By measuring
the angle of the Sun at Alexandria on the longest day of the year
(summer solstice) when the Sun shines vertically onto the city of Syene
in southern Egypt, Eratosthenes was able to determine the size of the
spherical Earth (Sect. 12.1, Vol. 1). Through the observations of the Sun,
the Moon, and the stars, ancient astronomers were able to determine
not only that the Earth was round, but also the size of the spherical
Earth.

1.2 The First Cosmological Models

After our ancestors realized that the Earth is round and not flat, they
were able to make sense of many peculiarities of the motion of celestial
objects. The different inclination of the polar axis at different locations
is because observers at different latitudes have different horizons (Fig.
1.2). The change in orientation of the horizon accounts for the reason
that different stars are visible by observers at different locations. While
an observer will see stars rise and set, a star that is too far south of the
celestial equator is never visible to an observer in the northern
hemisphere because it never rises above his horizon (Fig. 1.2).
Fig. 1.2 Changing horizon on a spherical Earth. The sphere of stars revolves around
an axis, whose angle of inclination with respect to the horizon (the green plane) is
dependent on the location of the observer on the spherical Earth. This diagram
illustrates the example of an observer at approximately 45° latitude north. The blue
circles are examples of trails of three stars at different declinations over one sidereal
day. Parts of the trails that are below the horizon (shown as dashed lines) cannot be
seen by the observer
All the apparent complexities of the motion of the Sun and the stars
can be explained by a two-sphere universe model where a spherical
Earth is situated at the center of a celestial sphere upon whose surface
the stars lie. In this model, the celestial sphere revolves around the
Earth from east to west each day. Because of the rotation of the celestial
sphere, stars rise above the horizon in the east and set below the
horizon in the west. Some stars can be seen throughout the night but
some stars cannot be seen at all (Fig. 1.2).
The Sun also revolves around the Earth, but its motion is slightly
slower than that of the stars by four minutes each day. Over the course
of a year, the Sun travels across the celestial sphere relative to the stars
from west to east along the plane of the ecliptic, which is inclined 23.5°
with respect to the equator of the spherical Earth (Fig. 1.3). Because of
this inclination angle, the Sun goes through a north-south motion over
the course of a year.
Fig. 1.3 The two-sphere Universe model. The model consists of an inner sphere (the
Earth) and an outer sphere (the celestial sphere) and can successfully explain the
apparent motion of the Sun at all locations on Earth. The daily (east to west) motion
of the Sun is explained by the rotation of the celestial sphere around the north-south
axis of the Earth. Perpendicular to this axis is the celestial equator (in red), which is
an extension of the Earth’s equator to the celestial sphere. The annual (north-south)
motion of the Sun is explained by its movement along the ecliptic (in blue), which is
inclined with respect to the celestial equator by 23.5°
The intersection points between the ecliptic and the celestial
equator are the vernal and autumnal equinoxes. When the Sun crosses
these two points, sunlight shines directly on the equator and the
lengths of day and night are equal. On these two days, the Sun rises
exactly in the east and sets exactly in the west. The northernmost and
southernmost points of the ecliptic are the summer and winter
solstices. When the Sun is at these two points, the difference in lengths
of day and night is most extreme. Sunrise and sunset will be at their
northernmost (on summer solstice) and southernmost (on winter
solstice) directions of the year. The two-sphere model, developed by the
Greeks over 2000 years ago, can successfully explain the changing
seasons and all the known observational facts of the apparent motions
of the Sun and the stars.
A practical device called the armillary sphere (Fig. 1.4) based on the
two-sphere universe model can be used to predict the time and
direction of sunrise/sunset from any place on Earth. It can also
determine the length of each day of the year for anywhere on Earth.
The two-sphere Universe model was extremely successful.
Fig. 1.4 A model of an armillary sphere. The spherical Earth is at the center.
Depending on the latitude of the observer, the north-south axis of the Earth is
inclined with respect to the horizon (the thick outside plate). Five rings
perpendicular to the north-south axis are the Arctic Circle, Tropic of Cancer, the
Equator, Tropic of Capricorn, and Antarctic Circle. The ecliptic (a thick band) is
inclined 23.5° with respect to the equator (Chap. 7, Vol. 1). Image created by the
Technology-Enriched Learning Initiative of the University of Hong Kong

1.3 Uneven Movements of the Sun and the Planets

While the two-sphere Universe model represented a tremendous
success in explaining the movement of celestial objects, unfortunately,
there are other complications. Although the seasons return in regular
annual intervals, the lengths of each season are unequal. This anomaly
was known as early as 330 B.C. by Callippus (370–330 B.C.), and the
lengths of the seasons were measured by Hipparchus (185–120 B.C.) to
be 94½, 92½, , and days for spring, summer, autumn, and

winter, respectively (in the northern hemisphere). Although the planets

generally revolve around the Earth from west to east, as does the Sun,
they appear to reverse direction (retrograde motion) from time to time.
The sphere of fixed stars is not oriented permanently with respect to
the ecliptic, the annual path of the Sun. The intersection point between
the celestial equator and the ecliptic shifts about 1° every 100 years.
This phenomenon is known as the precession of the equinox.
In order to explain these anomalies, Ptolemy in the first century A.D.
introduced additional elements into the two-sphere universe model.
Epicycles (cycles upon cycles) were introduced to explain the
retrograde motions of the planets. A planet moves at uniform speed
around an epicycle whose center revolves along a large circle called the
deferent. When the planet is inside of the deferent, it is in retrograde
motion (Fig. 1.5).
Fig. 1.5 The use of eccentric, epicycle, and equant in Ptolemy’s model of planetary
motion. The Earth and the equant are placed at equal distances on opposite sides of
the center of the deferent. The planet moves uniformly around the center of the
epicycle which revolves around the deferent centered on a point eccentric from the
Earth. The angular speed of the center of the epicycle is uniform relative to the
equant point
The concepts of eccentric and equant were also needed to explain
the unequal lengths of the seasons, the uneven motion of the planets,
and the precession of the equinox. The center of the deferent is
separated from the position of the Earth by the eccentric. The center of
the epicycle revolves uniformly relative to the equant, not the center of
the deferent. All three mathematical constructs are necessary to
successfully explain planetary motions.
Ptolemy’s model of the Universe consists of a stationary Earth at the
center, with a celestial sphere of stars revolving around it. Between the
Earth and the celestial sphere are the Sun, the Moon, and the planets all
revolving around the Earth near the plane of the ecliptic. The order of
celestial bodies from near to far is the Moon, Mercury, Venus, the Sun,
Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn (Fig. 1.6). To Ptolemy, the epicycles are not
just mathematical entities but carry real physical meaning. The orbits
and epicycles of the Sun, the Moon, and the planets fill the interior of
the celestial sphere without any empty space.
Fig. 1.6 Schematic diagram of Ptolemy’s cosmological model. The celestial sphere
upon which all stars lie revolves around a stationary Earth once a day. The Sun, the
Moon, and the five planets revolve around the Earth on the plane of the ecliptic also
once a day. In addition, these seven celestial objects also move relative to the stars
with different periods. The plane of the ecliptic is inclined with respect to the
equator of the Earth. The epicycles are not shown in this diagram. The sizes of the
planetary orbits and the celestial sphere are not to scale. The Earth should be just a
point in comparison to the size of the celestial sphere
By noting that the horizon of an observer always bisects the whole
celestial sphere into two halves no matter where the observer is located
Another random document with
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power, had it not been for the unpleasant fact, known to all the Court,
that the Emperor’s consort, A-lu-te, was enceinte and therefore
might confer an heir on the deceased sovereign. In the event of a
son being born, it was clear that both A-lu-te and Tzŭ An would ipso
facto acquire authority theoretically higher than her own, since her
title of Empress Mother had lapsed by the death of T’ung-Chih, and
her original position was only that of a secondary consort. As the
mother of the Emperor, she had by right occupied a predominant
position during his minority, but this was now ended. It was to her
motherhood that she had owed the first claims to power; now she
had nothing but her own boundless ambition, courage and
intelligence to take the place of lawful claims and natural ties. With
the death of her son the Emperor, and the near prospect of A-lu-te’s
confinement, it was clear that her own position would require
desperate remedies, if her power was to remain undiminished.
Among the senior members of the Imperial Clan, many of whom
were jealous of the influence of the Yehonala branch, there was a
strong movement in favour of placing on the Throne a grandson of
the eldest son of the venerated Emperor Tao-Kuang, namely, the
infant Prince P’u Lun, whose claims were excellent, in so far as he
was of a generation lower than the deceased T’ung-Chih, but
complicated by the fact that his father had been adopted into the
direct line from another branch. The Princes and nobles who
favoured this choice pointed out that the infant P’u Lun was almost
the only nominee who would satisfy the laws of succession and allow
of the proper sacrifices being performed to the spirit of the deceased
T’ung-Chih.[28]
Tzŭ Hsi, however, was too determined to retain her position and
power to allow any weight to attach to sentimental, religious, or other
considerations. If, in order to secure her objects, a violation of the
ancestral and House-laws were necessary, she was not the woman
to hesitate, and she trusted to her own intelligence and the servility
of her tools in the Censorate to put matters right, or, at least, to
overcome all opposition. At this period she was on bad terms with
her colleague and Co-Regent, whom she had never forgiven for her
share in the decapitation of her Chief Eunuch, An Te-hai; she hated
and mistrusted Prince Kung, and there is hardly a doubt that she had
resolved to get rid of the young Empress A-lu-te before the birth of
her child. The only member of the Imperial family with whom she
was at this time on intimate terms was her brother-in-law, Prince
Ch’un, the seventh son of the Emperor Tao-Kuang. This Prince, an
able man, though dissolute in his habits, had married her favourite
sister, the younger Yehonala, and it will, therefore, be readily
understood that the reasons which actuated her in deciding to place
this Prince’s infant son upon the Throne were of the very strongest.
During his minority she would continue to rule the Empire, and,
should he live to come of age, her sister, the Emperor’s mother,
might be expected to exert her influence to keep him in the path of
dutiful obedience. Tzŭ Hsi’s objection to the son of Prince Kung was
partly due to the fact that she had never forgiven his father for his
share in the death of the eunuch, An Te-hai, and other offences, and
partly because the young Prince was now in his seventeenth year,
and would, therefore, almost immediately have assumed the
Government in his own person. Tzŭ Hsi was aware that, in that
event, it would be in accordance with tradition and the methods
adopted by the stronger party in the Forbidden City for ridding itself
of inconvenient rivals and conflicting authorities, that either she
should be relegated to complete obscurity here below, or forcibly
assisted on the road to Heaven. It was thus absolutely necessary for
her to put a stop to this appointment, and, as usual, she acted with
prompt thoroughness, which speedily triumphed over the
disorganised efforts of her opponents. By adroit intrigues, exercised
chiefly through her favourite eunuch, she headed off any attempt at
co-operation between the supporters of Prince P’u Lun and those of
Prince Kung, while, with the aid of Jung Lu and the appearance on
the scene of a considerable force of Li Hung-chang’s Anhui troops,
she prepared the way for the success of her own plans; her
preparations made, she summoned a Council of the Clansmen and
high officials, to elect and appoint the new Emperor.
 Interior of the Yang Hsin Tien. (Palace of “Mind Nurture.”)

The Emperor T’ung-Chih used this Palace as his residence during the whole of his
reign.

Photo, Ogawa, Tokio.

This solemn conclave took place in the Palace of “Mind Nurture,”

on the western side of the Forbidden City, about a quarter of a mile
distant from the palace in which the Emperor T’ung-Chih had
expired. In addition to the Empresses Regent, those present
numbered twenty-five in all, including several Princes and Imperial
Clansmen, the members of the Grand Council, and several of the
highest metropolitan officials; but of all these, only five were
Chinese. Prince Tsai Chih, the father of Prince P’u Lun, was there,
as well as Prince Kung, both representing the proposed legitimate
claims to the Throne. The approaches to the Palace were thronged
with eunuchs, and Tzŭ Hsi had taken care, with the assistance of
Jung Lu, that all the strategical points in the Forbidden City should
be held by troops on whose loyalty she could completely depend.
Amongst them were many of Jung Lu’s own Banner Corps, as well
as detachments chiefly composed of members and adherents of the
Yehonala clan. By Tzŭ Hsi’s express orders, the newly-widowed
Empress A-lu-te was excluded from the Council meeting, and
remained dutifully weeping by the bedside of her departed lord, who
had already been arrayed in the ceremonial Dragon robes.
In the Council Chamber Tzŭ Hsi and her colleague sat opposite to
each other on Thrones; all the officials present were on their knees.
Taking precedence as usual, and assuming as of right the rôle of
chief speaker, Tzŭ Hsi began by remarking that no time must be lost
in selecting the new Emperor; it was not fitting that the Throne
should remain vacant on the assumption that an heir would be born
to His late Majesty. Prince Kung ventured to disagree with this
opinion, expressing the view that, as A-lu-te’s child would shortly be
born, there should be no difficulty in keeping back the news of the
Emperor’s death for a little while; the child, if a boy, could then rightly
and fittingly be placed on the Throne, while in the event of the
posthumous child being a daughter, there would still be time enough
to make selection of the Emperor’s successor. The Princes and
Clansmen appeared to side with this view, but Tzŭ Hsi brushed it
aside, observing that there were still rebellions unsuppressed in the
south, and that if it were known that the Throne was empty, the
Dynasty might very well be overthrown. “When the nest is destroyed,
how many eggs will remain unbroken?” she asked. The Grand
Councillors and several senior statesmen, including the three
Chinese representatives from the south, expressed agreement with
this view, for they realised that, given conditions of unrest, the
recently active Taiping rebels might very easily renew the anti-
Dynastic movement.
The Empress Dowager of the East then gave it as her opinion that
Prince Kung’s son should be chosen heir to the Throne; Prince
Kung, in accordance with the customary etiquette, kowtowed and
professed unwillingness that such honour should fall to his family,
and suggested that the youthful Prince P’u Lun should be elected.
P’u Lun’s father in turn pleaded the unworthiness of his offspring, not
because he really felt any qualms on the subject, but because
custom necessitated this self-denying attitude. “That has nothing to
do with the case,” said Tzŭ Hsi to the last speaker, “but as you are
only the adopted son of Yi Wei” (the eldest son of the Emperor Tao-
Kuang) “what precedent can any of you show for placing on the
Throne the heir of an adopted son?” Prince Kung, called upon to
reply, hesitated, and suggested as a suitable precedent the case of a
Ming Emperor of the fifteenth century canonised as Ying-Tsung.
“That is a bad precedent,” replied the Empress, who had every
precedent of history at her finger ends. “The Emperor Ying-Tsung
was not really the son of his predecessor, but was palmed off on the
Emperor by one of the Imperial concubines. His reign was a period
of disaster; he was for a time in captivity under the Mongols and
afterwards lived in retirement at Peking for eight years while the
Throne was occupied by his brother.” Turning next to her colleague
she said, “As for me, I propose as heir to the Throne, Tsai Tien, the
son of Yi Huan (Prince Ch’un), and advise you all that we lose no
time.” On hearing these words Prince Kung turned to his brother and
angrily remarked: “Is the right of primogeniture[29] to be completely
ignored?” “Let the matter then be decided by taking a vote,” said Tzŭ
Hsi, and her colleague offered no objections. The result of the vote
was that seven of the Princes, led by Prince Ch’un, voted for Prince
P’u Lun, and three for the son of Prince Kung; the remainder of the
Council voted solidly for Tzŭ Hsi’s nominee. The voting was done
openly and the result was entirely due to the strong will and
dominating personality of the woman whom all had for years
recognised as the real ruler of China. When the voting was
concluded, Tzŭ An, who was always more anxious for an amicable
settlement than for prolonged discussion, intimated her willingness to
leave all further arrangements in the hands of her colleague. It was
now past nine o’clock, a furious dust-storm was raging and the night
was bitterly cold, but Tzŭ Hsi, who never wasted time at moments of
crisis, ordered a strong detachment of Household troops to be sent
to the residence of Prince Ch’un in the Western City, and with it the
Imperial yellow sedan chair with eight bearers, to bring the boy
Emperor to the Palace. At the same time, to keep Prince Kung busy
and out of harm’s way, she gave him charge of the body of the dead
Emperor, while she had the Palace surrounded and strongly guarded
by Jung Lu’s troops. It was in her careful attention to details of this
kind that lay her marked superiority to the vacillating and
unbusinesslike methods of those who opposed her, and it is this
Napoleonic characteristic of the woman which explains much of the
success that her own people frequently attributed to luck. Before
midnight the little Emperor had been duly installed in the Palace,
weeping bitterly upon his ill-omened coming to the Forbidden City.
With him came his mother (Tzŭ Hsi’s sister) and several nurses. The
first event of his reign, imposed upon him, like much future misery,
by dynastic precedent, was to be taken at once to the Hall where his
deceased predecessor was lying in State, and there to kowtow, as
well as his tender years permitted, before the departed ruler. A
Decree was thereupon issued in the names of the Empresses
Dowager, who thus became once more Regents, announcing, “that
they were absolutely compelled to select Tsai Tien for the Throne,
and that he should become heir by adoption to his uncle Hsien-Feng,
but that, so soon as he should have begotten a son, the Emperor
T’ung-Chih would at once be provided with an heir.”
By this means the widowed Empress A-lu-te was completely
passed over, and the claims of her posthumous son ignored in
advance. Once more Tzŭ Hsi had gained an easy and complete
victory. It was clear to those who left the Council Chamber after the
issue of this Decree, that neither the young widowed Empress nor
the unborn child of T’ung-Chih were likely to give much more trouble.
For form’s sake, and in accordance with dynastic precedents, a
Memorial was submitted by all the Ministers and Princes of the
Household, begging their Majesties the Empresses to resume the
Regency, who, on their part, went through the farce of acceding
graciously to this request, on the time-honoured ground that during
the Emperor’s minority there must be some central authority to
whom the officials of the Empire might look for the necessary
guidance. It was only fitting and proper, however, that reluctance
should be displayed, and Tzŭ Hsi’s reply to the Memorial therefore
observed that “the perusal of this Memorial has greatly increased our
grief and sorrowful recognition of the exigencies of the times, for we
had hoped that the Regency was merely a temporary measure of
unusual expediency. Be it known that so soon as the Emperor shall
have completed his education, we shall immediately hand over to
him the affairs of the Government.”
The infant Emperor was understood to express “dutiful thanks to
their Majesties for this virtuous act” and all the formalities of the
tragic comedy were thus completed. The Empress Dowager gave
orders that the repairs which had been begun at the Lake and
Summer Palaces should now be stopped, the reason given being
that the Empresses Regent would have no time nor desire for gaiety
in the years to come; the real reason being, however, that the death
of the Emperor removed all necessity for their Majesties leaving the
Forbidden City.
Tzŭ Hsi’s success in forcing her wishes upon the Grand Council
and having her sister’s infant son appointed to the Imperial
succession, in opposition to the wishes of a powerful party and in
violation of the dynastic law, was entirely due to her energy and
influence. The charm of her personality, and the convincing
directness of her methods were more effective than all the forces of
tradition. This fact, and her triumph, become the more remarkable
when we bear in mind that she had been advised, and the Grand
Council was aware, that the infant Emperor suffered from physical
weaknesses which, even at that date, rendered it extremely unlikely
that he would ever provide an heir to the Throne. Those who
criticised her selection, knowing this, would have been therefore in a
strong position had they not been lacking in courage and decision,
since it was clear, if the fact were admitted, that Her Majesty’s only
possible motive was personal ambition.
From that time until the death of the Emperor and her own, on the
14th and 15th November 1908, the belief was widespread, and not
infrequently expressed, that the Emperor, whose reign began thus
inauspiciously, would not survive her, and there were many who
predicted that his death would occur before the time came for him to
assume supreme control of the Government. All foretold that Tzŭ Hsi
would survive him, for the simple reason that only thus could she
hope to regulate once more the succession and continue the
Regency. The prophets of evil were wrong, as we know, inasmuch
as Kuang-Hsü was allowed his years of grace in control of affairs,
but we know also that after the coup d’état it was only the fear of an
insurrection in the south that saved his life and prevented the
accession of a new boy Emperor.
The designation of the new reign was then ordered to be “Kuang-
Hsü,” meaning “glorious succession”; it was chosen to emphasise
the fact that the new Emperor was a direct lineal descendant of the
last great Manchu Emperor, Tao-Kuang, and to suggest the hope
that the evil days of Hsien-Feng and T’ung-Chih had come to an
end. The next act of the Empresses Regent was to confer an
honorific title upon the late Emperor’s widow; but the honour was not
sufficient to prevent her from committing suicide on the 27th of
March as an act of protest at the grievous wrong done to her, to the
memory of her husband and to the claims of his posthumous heir.
This was the unofficial explanation current, but opinions have always
differed, and must continue to differ, as to the truth of the suicide,
there being many who, not unnaturally, accused Tzŭ Hsi of putting
an end to the unfortunate woman. Against this the Empress’s
advocates observe that, having succeeded in obtaining the
appointment of Kuang-Hsü to the Throne, and the matter being
irrevocably settled, there existed no further necessity for any act of
violence: but few, if any, suggest that had circumstances
necessitated violent measures they would not have been taken. The
balance of evidence is undoubtedly in the direction of foul play. But,
however administered, it is certain that the death of the Empress A-
lu-te influenced public opinion more profoundly than she could ever
have done by living; as a result, thousands of Memorials poured in
from the Censorate and the provinces, strongly protesting against
the selection of the infant son of Prince Ch’un for the Throne, as a
violation of all ancestral custom and the time-honoured laws of
succession. It is significant that all these protests were clearly
directed against Tzŭ Hsi, her colleague’s nonentity being practically
and generally recognised. For a time Tzŭ Hsi’s popularity (and
therefore the position of the Yehonala clan) was seriously affected,
and when, four years later, the Censor, Wu K’o-tu, committed suicide
near T’ung-Chih’s grave to emphasise the seriousness of the crime
and to focus public attention on the matter, the Empress was
compelled to bow to the storm and to give a second and more
solemn pledge that the deceased Emperor should not permanently
be left without heirs to perform for him the sacrifices of ancestral
worship. It will be seen hereafter how she kept that pledge.
Prince Ch’un, in the capacity of father to the new Emperor,
submitted a Memorial asking leave to be permitted to resign his
various offices, because, as an official, he would be bound to
kowtow to the Emperor, and as a father he could not kowtow to his
own son. In the course of this Memorial, which reminds the reader
unpleasantly of Mr. Pecksniff, the Prince observes that when first
informed of his son’s selection as heir to the Dragon Throne, “he
almost fainted and knew not what to do. When borne to his home,
his body was trembling and his heart palpitating severely; like a
madman, or one who walks in dreams, was he, so that he incurred a
serious recurrence of his liver trouble and the state of his health
became really a matter for anxiety. He would prefer that the silent
tomb should close forthwith over his remains rather than to continue
to draw the breath of life as the useless son of the Emperor Tao-
Kuang.”
The Empress Dowager, in reply, directed her faithful Ministers to
devise a careful compromise “based on the special requirements of
the case,” the result of which was that Prince Ch’un was permitted to
resign his offices and excused from attendance at all Court
ceremonies involving obeisance to the Emperor, but was retained in
a sort of general capacity as “adviser to the Empresses Regent” to
serve when called upon. On the birthdays of the Empresses Regent,
he would be permitted to prostrate himself before them in private,
and not as a member of the Court in attendance on the Emperor. His
first class Princedom was made hereditary for ever, and he was
commanded to give the benefit of his experience and sage counsel
to his successor, Prince Tun, as officer commanding the Manchu
Field Force—an order which he must have obeyed, for the Force in
question became more and more notorious for its tatterdemalion
uselessness and the corruption of its commanders.
Remembering the institution of the first Regency, it will be noted
how faithfully history can be made to repeat itself in the Celestial
Empire.
 IX
THE PROTEST AND SUICIDE OF WU K’O-TU

Immediately after the death of T’ung-Chih’s young widow, the

validity of the Imperial succession and the violation of all traditions
which Tzŭ Hsi had committed, became a matter of grave concern to
the conservative and more conscientious supporters of the Dynasty.
The first evidence of dissatisfaction was contained in a Memorial
submitted by a Manchu sub-Chancellor of the Grand Secretariat
who, while accepting the situation as it stood in regard to the boy
Emperor, Kuang-Hsü, stipulated that safeguards or guarantees
should be given by the Throne for the eventual regulation of the
succession and for the provision of heirs to His orbate Majesty,
T’ung-Chih. The Memorial was as follows:—

“The selection of an heir to the Throne is a matter resting

entirely with the Sovereign and beyond scope of interference
or criticism by any subject. But in cases where the
arrangements made necessitate modification in order to
render them perfect, a loyal subject is justified, if not
compelled, to speak his mind freely.
“The whole Empire looked forward to seeing our late
Emperor enjoy a long and prosperous reign, but he has
passed away without leaving any posterity. The selection of a
successor which your Majesties the Empresses Dowager
have, in your wisdom, decided upon is admirable no doubt,
particularly since you have promised that an heir shall
eventually be provided for His Majesty, T’ung-Chih. This
proves that in regulating the dynastic succession, you are
proceeding precisely as if it were a case of adoption from one
family into another: you have therefore wisely decided that not
only shall a son be adopted to the late Emperor, but that in
due course his succession will be carried on by a grandson in
the direct line of generation, so that His Majesty’s posterity
may be established without a break, and perpetuated without
intermission for all time.
“The proposal in itself is excellent, but study of the Sung
Dynasty’s history has led me to view the matter with no small
apprehension. The founder of that Dynasty, the Emperor
Chao Kuang-yin (tenth century), following the directions of his
mother the Empress Dowager, made his brother heir to the
Throne instead of his son, it being understood that upon his
brother’s death the succession should revert to his son.[30]
Subsequently however, the brother, having come to the
Throne, and having listened to the evil suggestions of his
Privy Councillors, ignored the claims of his nephew, and
placed his own son upon the Throne. In that instance,
obedience to the wishes of his mother has brought down
upon the Emperor Chao Kuang-yin the undying censure of
posterity. If the Empress, on that occasion, had done her duty,
and had caused unbreakable bonds to be given assuring the
reversion of the succession to the direct line, no irregularities
could possibly have occurred: the Decrees would have been
as immovable as the Sacred Mountain, and as self-evident as
the nine tripods of the Emperor Yü. It would have been
impossible for any misguided Councillors of State to justify
their unlawful interference with the rightful course of
succession.
“From all this we learn that the succession, although
decided in a moment, affects all posterity. Was it not,
moreover, by self-sacrifice and strong family affections[31] that
our Dynasty acquired the Empire: have we not for example
the records of each succeeding virtuous Emperor? We cannot
therefore entertain any doubt but that the present Emperor,
when he comes to have an heir, will forthwith make him son
by adoption to the late Emperor, so that the succession may
proceed along the direct line. No doubt this is the intention,
but, as history shows, there exists a danger that, with the
 lapse of time, suggestions may be put forward similar to those
of the Privy Council nine centuries ago, which would utterly
frustrate the wise policy animating your Majesties the
Empresses Dowager, and leave no fixed principles for
posterity to follow. With your approval, therefore, we would
ask that the Princes and Ministers be now required to draw up
and record an unbreakable and unchangeable pledge as to
the succession to the Throne, which should be proclaimed for
the information of all your Majesties’ subjects.”

Tzŭ Hsi was becoming decidedly irritable on this subject of the

succession, and there can be little doubt that her own conscience
and the views of patriotic Memorialists came to much the same
conclusion. The Rescript which she issued on the present occasion
was short, sharp, and suggestive of temper:—

“We have already issued an absolutely clear Decree on this

subject,” she said, “providing for an heir to the late Emperor,
and the Decree has been published all over the Empire. The
Memorialist’s present request gives evidence of unspeakable
audacity and an inveterate habit of fault-finding, which has
greatly enraged us, so that we hereby convey to him a stern
rebuke.”

The Memorials and remonstrances of many high officials

emphasised the seriousness of this question of the legitimacy of the
Imperial succession to the nation at large, and its profound effect on
the fundamental principles of ancestor worship. Nevertheless, having
delivered their souls, the Mandarinate, led by the Peking Boards,
were disposed to acquiesce in the fait accompli; in any case, there
was no sign of organised opinion in opposition to the will of the
Empress Dowager. The irregularity was evidently serious, and
Heaven would doubtless visit the sins of the Throne, as usual, on the
unoffending “stupid people”; but the individualism and mutual
suspicion that peculiarly distinguish the Chinese official world,
precluded all idea of concerted action or remedial measures.
 One official, however, had the full courage of his convictions, and,
by the time-honoured expedient of self-destruction, focussed the
attention of the nation on the gravity of the question, as no amount of
fine writing could have done. Resort to suicide by indignant patriots,
as a proof of their sincere distress, is a practice praised and justified
alike by historians in China and Japan, and there is no denying that,
as an argument against all forms of despotism, it has the crowning
merit of finality. It has, moreover, certain qualities of deliberate
courage and cultured philosophy that bring irresistibly to mind the
Roman patrician at his best, and which fully account for the
distinction which such a death confers amongst a people that loves
its orthodoxies, as it loves peace, undisturbed.
The name which will go down in Chinese history, as the defender
of the national and true faith in connection with the illegal succession
of the infant Emperor Kuang-Hsü, is that of the Censor, Wu K’o-tu,
an upright and fearless scholar of the best type. For the reasons
stated in his farewell Memorial, he waited four years after the death
of the Emperor T’ung-Chih, hoping against hope that the widespread
dissatisfaction of the literati and officials would take definite form,
and lead the Empress Dowager to regulate the future succession,
and to placate the disinherited ghost of T’ung-Chih, by the issue of a
new Decree. Disappointed in this hope, he seized the classically
correct occasion of the late Emperor’s funeral (1879) to commit
suicide near his grave, taking care to leave behind him a swan-song
which, as he knew, will live long in the memory of scholars and
officials throughout the Empire. His death had the immediate effect
of convincing Tzŭ Hsi of error. Realising the strength of public
opinion underlying the Censor’s protest, she endeavoured at once to
placate his accusing spirit by giving the pledges for which he had
pleaded, in regard to provision in the future of a successor to T’ung-
Chih. Nor was it on this occasion only that the death of Wu K’o-tu
influenced her actions and disturbed her superstitious mind. In after
years, and especially at the time of the flight to Hsi-an, she
recognised his influence, and the punishment of her misdeed, in the
disasters which had overtaken the Throne.
 As an example of the principles of action, and the calm frame of
mind which are the fine flower of the Confucian system of
philosophy, and, therefore, worthy of our close and sympathetic
study, we give the full story of the death of this patriotic protestant,
as well as a translation of his Memorial.
His suicide took place in a small temple at Ma-shen ch’iao, close
to the mausoleum of T’ung-Chih. His minutely detailed instructions
for the disposal of his remains, with the least possible trouble to his
family and friends, bespeak the gentleman and the scholar. To the
priest in charge of the shrine, a “bad man,” he addressed the
following characteristic letter:—

“Priest Chou, be not afraid. I have no desire to bring evil

upon you. I was compelled to borrow the use of your plot of
hallowed ground, as a spot appropriate for the death of an
honest man. Inform now the Magistrate at once, and see that
the Memorial enclosed in my despatch box is forwarded
without delay. Buy for me a cheap coffin and have it painted
black inside. My clothes are all in order, only the leather soles
of my boots require to be cut off before you lay me in your
coffin. I have cut my finger slightly, which accounts for the
blood stains that you may notice. Twenty taels will be ample
for my coffin. I should not think that the Magistrate will need to
hold an inquest. Please have a coating of lacquer put on the
coffin, to fill up any cracks in the joints, and have it nailed
down, pending the Empresses’ decision as to my remains.
Then, buy a few feet of ground adjoining the late Emperor’s
tomb, and have me buried quickly.[32] There is no need for me
to be buried in my ancestral cemetery; any spot is a good
enough resting place for a loyal and honest man.
“You will find forty-five taels in my box, of which you may
keep the balance after paying for my coffin and burial
expenses. As to my watch, and the other articles on my
person, it is known at my home exactly what I brought here
with me. You must see to it that no one is permitted to insult
my corpse, and my son will be deeply grateful to you for
 performing these last offices for me, in his place. You need
not fear that the Magistrate’s underlings will make trouble for
you, but be careful not to tamper with the box containing my
Memorial to the Empresses.
“You can cut my body down to-morrow morning, and then
have it placed in some cool and shady spot. Fearing that
possibly you might come in by accident and find me hanging,
I have taken a dose of opium, so as to make certain of death.
If you should dare to meddle with my private affairs, as you
have been trying to do these past few days, it will only lead to
your being mixed up in the case, which might bring you to
grief.
“All I ask of you is that you notify the Magistrate at once,
and that you do not allow women and children to come in and
gaze upon my remains. There is nothing strange or abnormal
here; death had become an unavoidable duty. Those who
understand me, will pity; that is all. The last earnest
instructions of Wu K’o-tu.”

Next, to his son, he expressed his dying wishes in a letter which

embodies many of the Confucian scholar’s most cherished ideals
and beliefs, a document pathetic in its simple dignity, its pride of
ancient lineage and duty well done according to his lights.

“Chih-huan, my son, be not alarmed when you hear the

news of my death, and on no account allow your grief to
disturb the family. Your mother is old, your wife is young, and
my poor little grandchildren are but babies. Tell them that I am
dead, but bid them not to grieve over my suicide. Our family
tree goes back over five hundred years; for two centuries
there have been members of our clan among the Imperial
concubines, and for three hundred years we have devoted
ourselves to husbandry and scholarship. For eighteen
generations our family has borne a good name; I, who am
now seventy years of age, can claim an unsullied record,
although as a lad I was somewhat given to dissipation. No
man can truthfully accuse me of having failed to observe the
main principles of duty, and it is for this reason that my friends
and former pupils have always sought my services as a
teacher of the Confucian doctrine. Quite recently I declined
the pressing invitation of the Grand Secretary, the Marquis
Tso Tsung-t’ang, who wished me to become tutor to his family,
because the date was at hand for His late Majesty’s burial,
and I desired quietly to await to-day’s event.
“Ever since, at the age of twenty-four, I took my M.A.
degree, I have been of prudent conduct, and have observed
the proprieties in official life. In the study of history I have ever
been deeply touched by examples of patriotism and loyalty to
the Sovereign, and the splendid lives of the ancients have
moved me, now to tears and again to exuberance of joy.
“Upon the death of the late Emperor, I had determined to
memorialise the Empresses Dowager, through the Censorate,
and had fully made up my mind to accept my fate for so
doing; but an old friend, to whom I showed the draft, begged
me not to forward it, not only because I had already been
punished for similar rashness on a former occasion, but
because he said some of its allusions to current events were
not absolutely accurate. Therefore I waited until to-day, but
now I can wait no longer. It is my wish to die, in order that the
purpose of my life may be fittingly accomplished and a lifetime
of loyalty consummated. My death is in no way due to the
slanders which have been circulated about me.
“When you receive this letter, come straightway to the
Temple of the Threefold Duties at the bridge of the God of
Horses, twelve miles to the east of Chi Chou and quite close
to the Imperial mausolea. There seek out the Taoist priest,
Chou; he knows my burial place, and I have asked him to buy
me a coffin and to have it painted black inside. My burial
clothes are all in order, but I have asked him to cut off the
leather soles from my boots.[33] He is to buy a certain small
piece of ground, close to the Imperial tomb, which is to be my
grave. This will be far better than having my remains taken to
the ancestral burial ground, and there is really no need for me
to rest there, as my younger brother already lies beside your
grandparents. He, you remember, committed suicide twenty
years ago at his house in Peking, because of private troubles,
and now I follow his example, because of disorder in the
State. People will say, no doubt, that our family burial ground
is become a place of evil omen, but pay no heed to them. No
doubt you will desire to take home my remains, but do not so.
Take instead my photograph, the one I had taken just before I
left Peking, and have an enlargement of it hung up in our
family hall. Thus shall you observe the old custom which
preserves relics of the departed. Why go to the expense and
trouble of transporting a coffin over a thousand miles?
“Even though it should happen that the Empresses should
cause dire penalties to be inflicted upon my corpse because
of my effrontery of language, you may be sure that in this
enlightened age, there is no possibility of my offences being
visited upon my wife and family. All you need do is to borrow
from our friends money enough to take you from Peking, and
after that, you must make the best of your way to our family
home, begging if necessary. On no account must you remain
in Peking, for by so doing you will only attract attention and
further endanger your father.[34]
“What I chiefly deprecate in you, my son, is your quick
tongue; you must really try to amend your ways in this respect
and endeavour to be less hasty. If people tell you that your
father was loyal, do not contradict them; if they say he was an
honest man, you should agree. Read carefully the advice of
Ma Yüan, the great General, to his nephew, and Wang Hou’s
admonitions to his sons.
“When your mother married me she had good prospects, as
the daughter of an old military family. Since her marriage she
has dutifully served my parents, and her reputation for filial
devotion is excellent. I regret that I was not destined to bring
her happiness and good fortune: she is old now, and you
alone are left to her. It is your duty to take her to our home
and minister to her old age.
“As regards the few poor acres of land left me by my father,
I feel that I cannot reasonably expect you to follow the
example of the ancient worthies and to surrender it all to your
brothers, but at least I ask that you should allow them to live
amicably with you. Your wife is a sensible woman—tell her
from me that the happiness of every household depends on
the temper of its womenfolk. I knew one woman who feigned
death in order to induce her husband to treat his brothers
more kindly, but this was a heroic act, far above the moral
capacity of your wife.
“As to the forty taels[35] which you will find on my person,
you will hand over to the Taoist priest, Chou, any balance
there may remain after he has paid for my coffin and burial
expenses. On arriving at Chi Chou, go at once and see the
Magistrate, to whom I have written; thence proceed to the
temple, where you must give them some extra money to
compensate them for all the trouble they have had. Thereafter
return to Peking, and there await the Empresses’ decision in
regard to my case.
“See to it that my small debts are all paid, that my life may
end in fitting and harmonious dignity. At a moment like this, I
am naturally agitated in mind. It is hard to foretell what the
decision of the Empresses may be, but at least my
conscience is clear, and what does anything else matter? For
your own personal safety, I do not think you need have any
fear.
“Present my compliments to Chang Chih-tung: I only wish I
could have had more of the old time talks with him. Go also to
the Marquis Tso Tsung-t’ang. He has not treated me well of
late, but slanders poisoned his sympathy, at which I do not
wonder. The memory of his former kindnesses is precious to
me, and I know that he will never let you starve.
 “Your wife, in giving birth to my grandchildren, has
conferred blessings upon me; you must never think of
allowing her parents to provide for you. Leave therefore at
once for our family home. There must be no delay about this.
As to the Taoist priest, it irks me to make use of people in this
way. He is a bad man; yet must we bear with him. Tell him
that I regret having put his temple to this purpose; he need
only spend ten taels on my coffin and a few taels more for the
little plot of ground to bury me in. I am a worthless official and
deserve nothing better than this.
“Why have I delayed so long? Because I did not wish to
disturb the Empresses with the news of my death at this
critical time. All the Decrees which have appeared since the
Emperor Kuang-Hsü came to the Throne have moved me
greatly, and much have I deplored my inability to serve Their
Majesties better. In days of old, loyal servants of the State
were wont to commit suicide as an act of remonstrance
against the degeneracy of their Sovereigns. Not for a moment
are the Empresses to be compared to monarchs like Ming
Huang of the T’ang Dynasty, who deserted his capital before
the invader, or Li Tsung, of the Sungs, whose foolishness led
to the Mongol wars. Nevertheless my death is due to the
same principles as those which actuated those faithful
Councillors.
“Go home now, and teach your children to study. Do not
open my Memorial to the Empresses. It is sealed, and I have
asked the local Magistrate to forward it for presentation.”

His Memorial to the Throne was, in fact (as the letter to his son
plainly indicates), an indictment of the degeneracy of the ruler of the
Empire; incidentally, it throws much light on the orthodox point of
view in regard to the question of the Imperial succession. Its
preamble sets forth the object with which it was written, and in the
hope of which the writer died, namely, to induce the Empress
Dowager to determine the future succession, providing an heir to the