Nicolaus Copernicus was a man of many interest. He was an astronomer, mathematician, translator, artist, and physicist. Nicolaus Copernicus is the latin version of his name. His Polish name was Mikolaj Kopernik or Nicolaus Koppqrnigk. He was born February 19, 1473 in Toruń, Poland and he died May 24, 1543 in Frombork, Poland. His father, Nicolaus, and his mother, Barbara Watzenrode were from wealthy merchant families. Copernicus was the youngest of four children. His father died when he was 10 years old. He went to live with his uncle, Lucas Watzenrode the Younger. Copernicus was education at four universities. Between 1491 and 1494 he studied at the University of Kraków. There he studied Latin, mathematics, astrology, astronomy, geography …show more content…
His greatest contribution to the Renaissance and the world is the heliocentric model of the solar system. Copernicus book, On the Revolution of Heavenly Spheres is thought of as the most important book ever published in the field of astronomy. This book lead to the Copernican Revolution. During the Copernican Revolution their was a lot of interests in astronomy. Every astronomer who came after him was influenced by his theories. Many sought to add to and improve his work. Before Copernicus ideas, the accepted model of the universe was a geocentric model. The geocentric model assumed the Earth was the center of the universe. Copernicus’s model laid a foundation for other scientists to build on. One of those scientists was Tycho Brahe. Brahe developed the Tychonic System. The Tychonic system was a model of the solar system that combined the Copernican System with the Ptolemaic System. The Ptolemaic System stated that the Earth was the center of the universe and all of the other planets, stars and the Sun revolved, or circled, around it. The Tychonic System stated that the earth was stationary and at the center of the planetary system. It stated that the sun and moon revolve around the earth, and the other planets revolve around the
Over the next 50 years Copernicus’s book would slowly make its way across Europe. In 1566 a second edition was published without the false preface. The church denounced the book and Copernicus for “going against the bible”, but eventually began to accept it and allow it to be taught. Copernicus’s work was profound and changed the direction of Astronomy. It dared to challenge the notion that the Earth was the center of the universe, and that heavenly matter was unchanging and perfect. Over the next several hundred years Brahe would observe, Kepler and Newton would pour over the numbers and they would find the Copernicus’s model had underlying truths, some flaws, but with tweaking and vigilant observations of the celestial motions it would be the basis that lead them to the model we know today. Bringing forth what we know as the Copernican Revolution.
In the year of 1473, on the 19th of February, a soon-to-be, well remembered, mathematician/astronomer was born in the city of Torun, Poland. Born with the name of Nicolaus Copernicus, he was the fourth and youngest child of Nicolaus Copernicus Sr., and Barbara Watzenrode. Copernicus was, technically, born into German heritage. That being said, his primary language was german, bt many scholars believe he spoke fluently in Polish also. At ten years of age, the unfortunate happened to Nicolaus; His father passed away. After the passing of Nicolaus Sr., a maternal uncle stepped in and took over the parenting role. Nicolaus’ uncle took matters into his own hands to make sure Copernicus acquired the most outstanding education possible. Copernicus enrolled in the University of Cracow in the year of 1491. While at the university, he studied painting and mathematics. At that time, Copernicus took no classes over astronomy. Nicolaus developed a growing interest in cosmos and books. He then started a collection of books on astronomy. Following Nicolaus’s graduation from Cracow in 1494, he returned back to the city Torun. Copernicus's uncle had already had a job as a cannon arranged for him prior to his arrival. This job at Frombork Cathedral, was usually only given to priests. Such a fortunate and unusual opportunity, Copernicus took the job. He then held that job for the rest of his life. The position of a cannon allowed him to fund money to continue his studies for as long as he desired. There was really only one major downfall of the job. It took up a lot of his time, leaving him very little free time. It came to the point where academics had to come second. In the year of 1496, Nicolaus took a leave from his job. Not a two-week leave,...
To begin, many people did not support the new scientific discoveries because it would contradict religious doctrine. John Calvin, a French Protestant theologian, believed that science was only useful if it was used to glorify God (Doc 2). For many people, God was held higher than science and they took offense at the radical idea of the opposite, that science was higher than God. In fact, Giovanni Ciampoli, an Italian monk, wrote to Galileo telling him that he understood his ideas but that he should not share them publicly because he is not a clergyman, therefore people would not listen to him (Doc 3). Being a monk himself, Ciampoli's statement is very credibly since he is a prominent figure in religious work and he is very closely acquainted
Copernicus was born on February 19, 1473 in Thorn, Poland. He was the youngest son of four children and the son of a prosperous merchant. Following his father's death, his Uncle Lukas Watzelrode, bishop of Ermland, adopted him. Copernicus began his studies in Thorn and then at the University of Cracow where he studied mathematics and became very interested in humanistic studies.1 Copernicus left Cracow for Italy where he went to the Universities of Bologna and later Padua. He studied many different subjects including mathematics, canon law, and astronomy. Copernicus received a degree in medicine at the University of Padua, and went on to receive his doctorate from the University of Ferrara in canon law.
However, this is not to say that Tycho Brahe lived in vain. His was a voice that prompted a new approach to astronomy. His emphasis on accurate observation may well have been the foundation for Galileo to find the need to point his telescopes heavenward. Kepler only realized his laws of planetary motion after he was able to use the data that Tycho had collected. He was an important astronomer in his own right, and his legacy continues.
When he was 15 he attended the University of Chicago after getting a scholarship. There he studied ornithology and zoology. After graduating in 1947 he then started attending Indiana University after g...
The first record of the movement of the planets was produced by Nicolaus Copernicus. He proposed that the earth was the center of everything, which the term is called geocentric. Kepler challenged the theory that the sun was the center of the earth and proposed that the sun was the center of everything; this term is referred to as heliocentric. Kepler’s heliocentric theory was accepted by most people and is accepted in today’s society. One of Kepler’s friends was a famous person named Galileo. Galileo is known for improving the design and the magnification of the telescope. With improvement of the telescope Galileo could describe the craters of the moon and the moons of Jupiter. Galileo also created the number for acceleration of all free falling objects as 9.8 meters per second. Galileo’s and Kepler’s theories were not approved by all people. Their theories contradicted verses in the bible, so the protestant church was extremely skeptical of both Galileo and Kepler’s
Within Ptolemy’s 13 part series, Mathematike, Syntaxis, and Mathematical Composition, he, “developed a theory of the universe which claims that the earth is stationary and all the planets and stars revolve around it,” (Document C). Ptolemy’s theory was accepted as the standard view of the universe, until Nicolaus Copernicus’ astronomical studies were published in 1543. Copernicus’ theory was the “simplest,” and “most accurate,” (Document C); it encompassed that the Sun is at rest near the center of the Universe, and that the Earth, spinning on its axis once daily, revolves annually around the Sun. The heliocentric, or Sun-centered, system is still used today, and without these discoveries we would not be as advanced as we are
The team of Tycho Brahe and John Keppler were the next to study Copernicus’ theory. Brahe tried to disprove Copernicus’ theory and tried to prove the idea of the earth-centered universe. Although Keppler was Brahe’s assistant, he argued for Copernicus and analyzed Brahe’s data to conclude that the sun was the center of the universe. Keppler also used Brahe’s data to discover the movement of the planet Mars. This was the key to explaining all planetary motion. ii He also discovered the planets move in elliptical orbits, which also went against the beliefs of the church. Kepp...
Copernicus was a scientist and philosopher whose theory proposed that the sun was stationary, and the heavens orbit around the sun. Galileo tried to convince the Church not to abolish the Copernican theory but was told that he was not to entertain such thoughts with others.... ... middle of paper ... ...(n.d.).
Another important individual who drove history was the Italian astronomer and scientist Galileo Galilei. Galileo discovered something so important that it changed the selfish perspective that humans were the center of the universe and led to the growth of human knowledge. Utilizing mathematics and a telescope he had developed, Galileo observed that the planets revolved around the sun and not the Earth. This was a significant discovery because not only did it contradict what the church had taught, it also showed that the universe was not what it seemed. With this truth uncovered, many people began to fascinate over the universe. This triggered people to begin studying space extensively and eventually lead to present day space exploration. Galileo also left a lasting impression upon many great minds, such as Sir Isaac Newton, who used Galileo's research and theories to further his own studies such as the physical laws, and their properties.
In 1513, Nicholas Copernicus, composed a brief theory that stated that the sun is at rest and the earth is in rotation around the sun. In 1543, just days before his death, Copernicus published this theory in On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres. This theory was meant to dissolve the long lived belief in Ptolemyís theory which stated, "The earth was at the center because it was the heaviest of objects(Kagan331)." This was a common belief at that time, which supported the religious beliefs that the earth was the center of the universe and God in the heavens were surrounding the earth. Copernicusís theory was shocking, but he published such a controversial theory without sufficient evidence, it had to be considered invalid.
Galileo Galilei was born on February 15, 1564, in Pisa, Italy. He was a mathematics professor who made pioneering observations of nature with long-lasting implications for the study of physics. Galileo constructed a machine that changed everything in astronomy, the telescope, and this supported the Copernican theory. In 1600, Galileo met Marina Gamba, a Venetian woman, who gave him three children. The daughters were Virginia and Livia, and son Vincenzo. But He never married Marina because he feared his illegitimate children would threaten his social standing. He died in Arcetri, Italy, on January 8, 1642.
Nicholaus Copernicus is one of the most well known astronomers of all time. He is even labeled as the founder of modern astronomy for the proposition of his heliocentric theory (“Nicolaus Copernicus”, Scientists: Their Lives and Works). The heliocentric theory was revolutionary for Copernicus’ time. Copernicus lived during the Renaissance. “The era of the Renaissance (roughly 1400-1600) is usually known for the “rebirth” of an appreciation of ancient Greek and Roman art forms, along with other aspects of classical teachings that tended to diminish the virtually exclusive concentration on religious teachings during the preceding centuries of the “Dark Ages.” New thinking in science was also evident in this time…” This time period became known as the scientific revolution (“Copernicus: On The Revolutions Of Heavenly Bodies). In other words, old ideas were revived in the arts and other means and less emphasis was placed o...
...centred universe, like Aristotle, and Ptolemy posed new questions for Copernicus's successors. Galileo, Kepler, Descartes, and finally Newton would be viewed as the successors to the Copernicus theory, and their contributions would complete the Copernicus revolution. Galileo with his telescope, Kepler with his ellipses, and Newton with his laws of motion and gravity.