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The Timbuktu Scholar Who Measured the Stars
In 15th-century Timbuktu, a scholar named Abou Bakr Ibn Ahmad al-Timbukti calculated the Earth's circumference using mathematics and astronomy—without modern instruments. This episode explores how he built on the works of al-Battani and al-Zarqali, and how his manuscript, 'The Gift of the Inquisitive for the Path of the Stars,' reveals a vibrant intellectual tradition in the Sahel. Lucas and Luna discuss the Sankore curriculum, the use of astrolabes and celestial globes, and how Timbuktu's scholars engaged with Ptolemaic astronomy. They also touch on the controversy over…
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