This study examines an 8-ja (1,66 m) gnomon built by the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute (KASI, 127°22′32″ N, 36°23′57″ E) in 2011. This gnomon is an astronomical instrument with the same function as the Small Gnomon, which was built in 1440 during the reign of King Sejong of the Joseon Dynasty. The length of the column’s (or crossbar’s) shadow cast by the sun at the meridian passage was measured for a total of 303 days out of the 1,492-day observation period, which lasted from December 2015 to December 2019. The shadow lengths showed a measurement error of -0.8 to 1.2 cm compared to modern calculations. Furthermore, this study also estimated the time of the winter solstice using shadow lengths obtained from modern calculations for 50 days before and after the winter solstice. This calculation method was first introduced in the Daming Calendar (462) by Zu Zhongzhi (祖冲之, 429-500) and was applied to the Shushi Calendar (1281) by Guo Shoujing (郭守敬, 1231~1316). The time of the winter solstice did not demonstrate a constant value on the days before and after the winter solstice but showed a decreasing pattern, which had a constant slope each year. The tropical year can be obtained from the time of the winter solstice of two consecutive years. The fractional part of the tropical year (0.242 189 days) was estimated 0.242 789 ± 0.003 570 days in 2015-2016 (using data from 23 days both before and after the winter solstice) and 0.242 480 ± 0.004 616 days in 2016-2017 (using data from 45 days both before and after the winter solstice). Ultimately, the length of the tropical year estimated from the shadow lengths measured by the KASI’s 8-ja gnomon achieved an accuracy of 365.24 days. The observation value of the 8-ja gnomon showed an error of 0.1624 (±0.1229) days. It was found that this actual measurement error could result in an error of 3.9 h in the estimation of the time of the winter solstice or the accuracy of the length of the tropical year.

During the reign of King Sejong in the Joseon Dynasty (1433-1438), the Daegyupyo (large gnomon) was produced. The Daegyupyo, with a crossbar (horizontal bar), was used to observe the length of the gnomon’s shadow cast by the sun passing at the meridian. The shadow of this crossbar can be obtained using a measurable device called the Yeongbu (shadow definer). These Daegyupyo and Yeongbu are described in detail in the “Treatise on Astronomy” of Yuan History or “Celestial Spheres and Globes” of Jega-Yeoksang-Jjp (Collected Discourses on the Astronomy and Calendrical Science of the Chinese Masters). According to Jega-Yeoksang-Jjp, the Yeongbu had a structure similar to a door attached to its frame. A pinhole is located in the center of a copper leaf corresponding to the door of the Yeongbu. The image of the sun’s meridian transit and the shadow of the crossbar through the pinhole are projected onto the surface of the Daegyupyo’s ruler stone. Unlike the width and length of the Yeongbu, the height of the Yeongbu is not recorded. This research analyzed the height of the Yeongbu required to maintain the constant distance from the pinhole to the ruler stone surface. Based on these assumptions, it was estimated that 8 to 13 Yeongbu of different heights would be needed for observations using the Daegyupyo in Seoul. To accommodate the need for Yeongbu of various heights, this study proposed a model for a stackable Yeongbu with an adjustable height.

This study employs a range of AI-based bibliometric methods to examine trends among astronomical research publications. Astronomy is a field with a long history of research and a wide variety of fields, so there are many areas in which quantitative bibliometric studies can be used to categorize topics, summarize research trends, and explore future research directions. For our first attempt we chose the oldest astronomical instrument, the sundial. We collected a total of 172 sundial and gnomon research papers from 1909 to 2024 from Web of Science and Scopus databases. A bibliometric analysis of the astronomical research papers was performed using the bibliometrix package in R. Topics were categorized and discussed using the Structural Topic Model (STM) method. Productivity, citation counts, and other metrics were compared across countries and journals and the global network of researchers engaged in the study of sundials was analyzed. Results emphasize the need for greater international collaboration and interdisciplinary integration. Current trends in sundial and gnomon research were reviewed, identifying eight research topics through the use of STM, demonstrating the evolution of this field into various applications. The article concludes by discussing future research directions for sundials and gnomons, demonstrating the applicability of AI-assisted bibliometric analysis in various fields of astronomy research.

Gyupyo (圭表, Gnomon) consists of Gyu (圭, Measuring Scale) and Pyo (表, Column), and was one of the traditional astronomical instruments in East Asia. Daegyupyo (Large Gnomon) was manufactured in the Joseon dynasty around 1434 ~ 1435. To increase the measurement accuracy, it was equipped with a Hoengyang (橫梁, Cross-bar) and used a Youngbu (影符, Shadow-Definer) which was invented during the Yuan dynasty (1271 ~ 1368). The cross-bar was installed on the top of the column and this structure was called Eol (臬). In addition, three plumbs hanging from the cross-bar was employed to vertically built Eol on the measuring scale. This method was also used to not only check the vertical of Eol but also diagnose the horizontal of the cross-bar. Throughout this study, we found that a cross-bar in a gnomon has played three important roles; measurement of the shadow length made by the central part of the Sun, increase of the measurement precision using the shadow-definer, and diagnosis of the vertical of Eol and the horizontal of the cross-bar itself using the three plumbs. Hence, it can be evaluated that the employment of a cross-bar and a shadow-definer in a gnomon was a high technology in the contemporary times. In conclusion, we think that this study is helpful for understanding the Large Gnomon of the Joseon dynasty.

In this study, the characteristics of a horizontal sundial from the Joseon Dynasty were investigated. Korea’s Treasure No. 840 (T840) is a Western-style horizontal sundial where hour-lines and solar-term-lines are engraved. The inscription of this sundial indicates that the latitude (altitude of the north celestial pole) is 37° 39´, but the gnomon is lost. In the present study, the latitude of the sundial and the length of the gnomon were estimated based only on the hour-lines and solar-termlines of the horizontal sundial. When statistically calculated from the convergent point obtained by extending the hourlines, the latitude of this sundial was 37° 15´ ± 26´, which showed a 24´ difference from the record of the inscription. When it was also assumed that a convergent point is changeable, the estimation of the sundial’s latitude was found to be sensitive to the variation of this point. This study found that T840 used a vertical gnomon, that is, perpendicular to the horizontal plane, rather than an inclined triangular gnomon, and a horn-shaped mark like a vertical gnomon is cut on its surface. The length of the gnomon engraved on the artifact was 43.1 mm, and in the present study was statistically calculated as 43.7 ± 0.7 mm. In addition, the position of the gnomon according to the original inscription and our calculation showed an error of 0.3 mm.