Story
Aryabhata wrote the Aryabhatiya in 499 CE, at the age of 23, at Kusumapura (Pataliputra). In just 121 verses it covers arithmetic, algebra, trigonometry and astronomy. India named its first satellite, launched in 1975, after him.
Key contributions
- Gave π ≈ 3.1416 and noted that it is only an approximation
- Taught that the Earth rotates on its axis, explaining the daily motion of the stars
- Explained solar and lunar eclipses through shadows of the Earth and Moon
- Compiled a table of sines and used a place-value number system