Eclipse of Thales

The eclipse of Thales was a solar eclipse in the early 6th century BC that was, according to the ancient Greek historian Herodotus (writing about 150 years later), accurately predicted by the Greek philosopher Thales of Miletus. If Herodotus' account is accurate, this eclipse is the earliest recorded as being known in advance of its occurrence. The only solar eclipse matching the presumed place, era, and conditions of visibility necessary to explain the historical event is the eclipse of 28 May 585 BC.

How exactly Thales could have predicted a solar eclipse remains uncertain, and modern scholars are skeptical of the story's veracity. Some have argued for different dates, or for other interpretations of Herodotus's account.

According to Herodotus, the change of day into night was interpreted as an omen, and interrupted a battle (sometimes called the "Battle of the Eclipse") in a long-standing war between the Medes and the Lydians in Anatolia (present-day Turkey). American writer Isaac Asimov described this battle as the earliest historical event whose date is known with precision to the day, and called the prediction "the birth of science".