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Category Archives: Historical
Shaving for Science – the Principle of Occam’s Razor
One of the most crucial aspects of the Scientific Method is finding a model that fits observational data. However, what happens when multiple models fit our observations equally well? Which one do we choose? Here is where Occam’s Razor comes in. This principle states that we should generally choose the simplest model in such situations. […] Continue reading
Posted in Historical, Science
Tagged astro2110, blog2
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Ancient Achievements
In other religions, there was no need for astronomy except for the creation of the calendar. Ancient Pagans used Stonehenge to determine their calendar. In Early Judaism, they created their calendar. For Christianity, although it helped dictate holidays, it had pushback from philosophy and scientific observations. Astronomy played a major role in early Islam. Besides … Continue reading Ancient Achievements → Continue reading
Posted in Class, General, Historical, Observables
Tagged astro2110, blog2, discoveries
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Ancient African Astronomy
We’ve all heard that Stonehenge was a type of calendar or observatory that has been around longer than civilization. I did some digging to find other examples of ancient astronomy practices and I came across the following video: Nabta Playa video source. More information. This is an example of ancient people demonstrating an understanding of astronomy … Continue reading Ancient African Astronomy → Continue reading
Posted in Historical
Tagged archaeoastronomy, astro2110, blog2
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Historical Astronomers in Context
Tycho Brahe (Dec. 14, 1546 – Oct. 24,1601) Perhaps Tycho Brahe’s most significant contribution to astronomy was his ability to disprove an accepted belief regarding the ability of celestial objects to change. At the time, the accepted idea was that stars, planets, etc. were “unchangeable.” However, Tycho Brahe’s observation of a 1572 supernova shattered this…
Historical Astronomers in Context
Galileo Galilei was born on February 15, 1564 and died on January 8, 1642. During his lifetime he made monumental contributions to the world of astronomy. He did not invent the telescope, but he made improvements to it and this allowed him to observe the universe, like no one had ever done. Some of the … Continue reading Historical Astronomers in Context → Continue reading
Historical Astronomers in Context
1. Isaac Newton: 25 December 1642 – 20 March 1726/27. 2. I admire Isaac Newton (12/25/1642-03/20/1726) a whole lot and here is why: He was modest enough to build on the work of Kepler’s law, instead of making his own from scratch. Through his work, we were able to have a deeper understanding of gravitation and its … Continue reading Historical Astronomers in Context → Continue reading
Historical Astronomers in Context
Historical Figures of Astronomy Astronomer Birth Date Death Date Nicholas Copernicus 19 February 1473 24 May 1543 Galileo Galilei 15 February 1564 8 January 1642 Johannes Kepler December 27, 1571 November 15, 1630 Isaac Newton 4 January 1643 31 March 1727 Tycho Brahe 14 December 1546 24 October 1601 Note: Galileo Galilei and Johannes Kepler … Continue reading Historical Astronomers in Context → Continue reading
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Tagged astro2110, Kepler
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Some Context… But More!
Tycho Brahe (14 December 1546 – 24 October 1601) was the master of unassisted observational astronomy. A major portion of this was due to his building of the observatory and castle Uraniborg. Uraniborg was designed inside and out to collect the most precise measurements known at the time. Possibly though, more important was that he […] Continue reading
Tycho Brahe in Context
Tycho Brahe was born on December 14, 1546 and died on October 24, 1601. These dates are converted to the Gregorian Calendar, as the Gregorian Calendar was established during his lifetime. Tycho Brahe made vast improvements to the instruments of measurement used in the study of astronomy. He was a pioneer in observational astronomy in … Continue reading Tycho Brahe in Context Continue reading
Two Times Sir Isaac Newton Could have Died
Sir Isaac Newton (Jan. 4th, 1643 — Mar. 31st, 1727) is important to astronomy because he formulated the mathematical and physical ideas that would give future astronomers… Read more “Two Times Sir Isaac Newton Could have Died” Continue reading
Posted in Historical
Tagged astro2110, Newton
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