Category Archives: Historical

Historical Astronomers in Context: Nicolaus Copernicus

Nicolaus Copernicus (February 19, 1473 – May 24, 1543) was a huge contributor to the world of astronomy. Not only is he viewed as the father of modern astronomy, he created the heliocentric theory and model of the universe. He was the first scientist in the modern era to propose that Earth traveled around theContinue reading “Historical Astronomers in Context: Nicolaus Copernicus” Continue reading

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Historical Astronomers in Context

Galileo Galilei (February 15th, 1564 – January 8th, 1642) Galileo Galilei’s contribution to the field of astronomy is well known around the world. The Italian-born polymath initially focused on mathematics and physics, but his studies moved him to the telescope. Galileo learned about and improved upon the telescope, significantly increasing its power, which allowed himContinue reading “Historical Astronomers in Context” Continue reading

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Historical Astronomers in Context

Johannes Kepler (1571-1630) was important to astronomy since he came up with three laws to describe planetary motion (Kepler’s laws of planetary motion). The first law states that planets have elliptical orbits with the Sun at one focus of the ellipse while the other focus is just empty space. This is significant because previous astronomersContinue reading “Historical Astronomers in Context” Continue reading

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Historical Astronomers in Context

My chosen astronomer is Johannes Kepler. Kepler was born on December 27, 1571 and died on November 15, 1630. Kepler is mainly credited for establishing his three laws about planetary motion and orbits. Two major historical events that occurred during Kepler’s lifetime were the founding of Jamestown settlement and the start of the Thirty YearsContinue reading “Historical Astronomers in Context” Continue reading

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Historical Astronomers in Context

Nicholas Copernicus: Born: February 19th, 1473 Death: May 24th, 1543 Copernicus was an influential figure for astronomy because of his work in promoting the heliocentric model that ultimately led to the Copernican Revolution. While Aristarchus first proposed a sun centered model, Copernicus’ work in De Revolutionibus Orbium Coelestium signified a change from a Ptolemaic modelContinue reading “Historical Astronomers in Context” Continue reading

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Historical Astronomers in Context

Galileo Galilei was born on February 15th, 1564 and died on November 15th, 1630. Galileo, operating in a world of general ignorance surrounding the concepts of physics, is held as the father of modern physics. His early (and somewhat rough) discoveries in astronomy solidified the idea that the sun was the center of our universe—notContinue reading “Historical Astronomers in Context” Continue reading

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Copernicus in Context

Astronomer: Nicolaus Copernicus (19 February 1473 – 24 May 1543) Copernicus purported seven postulates in his Commentariolus, and the postulates became the foundation of the heliocentric cosmology (David Weintraub, “Copernicus” (Nashville, TN, 2020)).  The postulates were the following (quoted directly from Weintraub): There is not a single center for all the celestial orbs or spheresContinue reading “Copernicus in Context” Continue reading

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Historical Astronomers in Context

Galileo Galilei made many significant contributions to the field of astronomy studies. Primarily, he was able to offer new knowledge on laws of circular motion and inertia which served as a catalyst to the further studying of motion. Additionally, he utilized telescopic conformation in understanding the phases of Venus, analyzed sun spots, Saturn’s rings, andContinue reading “Historical Astronomers in Context” Continue reading

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Historical Astronomers in Context

Nicholas Copernicus.  Born February 1473, Died May 1543. Johannes Kepler. Born December 1571, Died November 1630. Tycho Brahe.  Born December 1546, Died October 1601. Galileo Galilei. Born February 1564, Died January 1642. Isaac Newton. Born January 1643, Died March 1727. Nicholas Copernicus and Isaac Newton did not live with any of the scientists on thisContinue reading “Historical Astronomers in Context” Continue reading

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Historical Astronomers in Context

Johannes Kepler – born on December 27th, 1571 and died on November 15th, 1630. Jamestown – established in 1607. This was the first major English town/colony in the Americas, and it marked the beginning of the settlement of North America. Thirty Years War – began in 1618. This was a major conflict between Protestants andContinue reading “Historical Astronomers in Context” Continue reading

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