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<title>Beginnings of Modern Astronomy</title>
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<H1>Beginnings of Modern Astronomy</H1>


<H2>Copernicus </H2>

Biography in Dictionary of Scientific Biography
<br/>
<a href="http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9105759">Encyclopaedia Britannica<a/>
(also: 
<a href="http://search.eb.com.ezproxy.csusm.edu/eb/article-9105759">Academic Edition<a/>,
requires campus password)
<br/>
Crater Copernicus
<br/>
Crater Copernicus on Mars

<p/>
<a href="http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/Biographies/Copernicus.html">
MACTUTOR<a/>. 
Nicolaus Copernicus
<br/>
Born: 19 Feb 1473 in Torun, Poland
<br/>
Died: 24 May 1543 in Frauenburg (now Frombork), Poland
<br>
Summary: 
Polish astronomer and mathematician.
A proponent of the view of an Earth in daily motion about its axis and in yearly motion around a stationary sun. 
This theory profoundly altered later workers' view of the universe, but was rejected by the Catholic church.

<p/>
<a href="http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9105759">
BRITANNICA<a/>. 
Nicolaus Copernicus
<br/>
Born: Feb. 19, 1473, Torun, Poland
<br/>
Died: May 24, 1543, Frauenburg, East Prussia [now Frombork, Poland]
<br/>
Polish:  Mikolaj Kopernik
<br/>
Summary:
Polish astronomer.
Proposed that the planets have the Sun as the fixed point (heliocentric); 
that the Earth tturns once daily on its own axis; 
and that very slow, long-term changes in the direction of this axis account for the precession of the equinoxes. 
Copernicus probably hit upon his main idea sometime between 1508 and 1514, and during those years he wrote a manuscript usually called the Commentariolus (“Little Commentary”). 
However, the book that contains the final version of his theory, 
<i>De revolutionibus orbium coelestium libri vi</i> 
(“Six Books Concerning the Revolutions of the Heavenly Orbs”), did not appear in print until 1543, the year of his death.

<p/>
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copernicus">
WIKI<a/>.
Nicolaus Copernicus (February 19, 1473 – May 24, 1543)
<br/>
Summary: 
Provided the first modern formulation of a heliocentric (sun-centered) theory of the solar system in
<i>De revolutionibus orbium coelestium</i> (On the Revolutions of the Celestial Spheres).
One of the great polymaths of the Renaissance. 
A mathematician, astronomer, jurist, physician, classical scholar, governor, administrator, diplomat, economist and soldier. 
Amid his extensive responsibilities, he treated astronomy as an avocation. 
His formulation of how the sun rather than the earth is at the center of the solar system 
 came to mark the starting point of modern astronomy and, in turn, of modern science.

<p/>
<a href="http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/copernicus/">
STANFORD<a/>. 
Nicolaus Copernicus (1473-1543)
<br/>Summary: 
A mathematician and astronomer.
 Proposed that the sun was stationary in the center of the universe and the earth revolved around it. Disturbed by the failure of Ptolemy's geocentric model of the universe to follow Aristotle's requirement for the uniform circular motion of all celestial bodies and determined to eliminate Ptolemy's equant, an imaginary point around which the bodies seemed to follow that requirement, Copernicus decided that he could achieve his goal only through a heliocentric model. 
Thereby created a concept of a universe in which the distances of the planets from the sun bore a direct relationship to the size of their orbits. At the time Copernicus's heliocentric idea was very controversial; nevertheless, it was the start of a change in the way the world was viewed, and Copernicus came to be seen as the initiator of the Scientific Revolution.

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<img src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f2/Nikolaus_Kopernikus.jpg"
height="500"/>
<img src="http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/BigPictures/Copernicus_8.jpeg"
height="500"/>
<p/>
<img src="http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/BigPictures/Copernicus.jpeg"
height="300"/>
<img src="http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/BigPictures/Copernicus_3.jpeg"
height="300"/>
<img src="http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/BigPictures/Copernicus_14.jpeg"
height="300"/>


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<img src="http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/BigPictures/Copernicus_5.jpeg"
height="150"/>
<img src="http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/BigPictures/Copernicus_6.jpeg"
height="150"/>
<img src="http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/BigPictures/Copernicus_7.jpeg"
height="150"/>
<img src="http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/BigPictures/Copernicus_10.jpeg"
height="150"/>
<img src="http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/BigPictures/Copernicus_11.jpeg"
height="150"/>
<img src="http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/BigPictures/Copernicus_12.jpeg"
height="150"/>

<p/>
<img src="http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/BigPictures/Copernicus_13.jpeg"
height="500"/>


<H2>Tycho Brahe </H2>

Biography in Dictionary of Scientific Biography
<br/>
<a href="http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9016148">Encyclopaedia Britannica<a/>
(also: 
<a href="http://search.eb.com.ezproxy.csusm.edu/eb/article-9016148">Academic Edition<a/>,
requires campus password)
<br/>
Crater Tycho Brahe on Mars

<p/>
<a href="http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/Biographies/Brahe.html">
MACTUTOR<a/>. 
Tycho Brahe
<br/>
Born: 14 Dec 1546 in Knutstorp, Skane, Denmark (now Svalöv, Sweden)
<br/>
Died: 24 Oct 1601 in Prague, Bohemia (now Czech Republic)
<br>
Summary: 
Danish astronomer.
Best known for the astronomical observations which led Kepler to his theories.

<p/>
<a href="http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9016148">
BRITANNICA<a/>. 
Tycho Brahe
<br/>
Born: December 14, 1546, Knudstrup, Scania, Denmark
<br/>
Died: October 24, 1601, Prague
<br/>
Summary:
Danish astronomer.
Paved the way for future discoveries by
developing astronomical instruments and in measuring and fixing the positions of stars.
His observations—the most accurate possible before the invention of the telescope—included a comprehensive study of the solar system and accurate positions of more than 777 fixed stars.

<p/>
<a href="http://galileo.rice.edu/Catalog/NewFiles/brahe.html">
The Galileo Project<a/>

<p/>
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tycho_Brahe">
WIKI<a/>.


<p/>
<img src="http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/BigPictures/Brahe.jpeg"
height=
"500" />

<img src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/8/8a/Tycho.JPG"
height=
"500" />

<p/>

<img src="http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/BigPictures/Brahe_3.jpeg"
height=
"400" />

<img src="http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/BigPictures/Brahe_2.jpeg"
height=
"400" />


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<img src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9b/Mauerquadrant.jpg"
height=
"700" />


<p/>

<img src="http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/BigPictures/Brahe_5.jpeg"
height=
"300" />


<H2>Galileo </H2>

Biography in Dictionary of Scientific Biography
<br/>
<a href="http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9105766">Encyclopaedia Britannica<a/>
(also: 
<a href="http://search.eb.com.ezproxy.csusm.edu/eb/article-9105766">Academic Edition<a/>,
requires campus password)
<br/>
Crater Galilaei and Rima Galilaei
<br/>
Paris street names: Rue Galilée (16th Arrondissement)

<p/>
<a href="http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/Biographies/Galileo.html">
MACTUTOR<a/>. 
Galileo Galilei
<br/>
Born: 15 Feb 1564 in Pisa (now in Italy)
<br/>
Died: 8 Jan 1642 in Arcetri (near Florence) (now in Italy)
<br>
Summary: 
Italian scientist.
Formulated the basic law of falling bodies, which he verified by careful measurements. 
Constructed a telescope with which he studied lunar craters, and discovered four moons revolving around Jupiter and espoused the Copernican cause.

<p/>
<a href="http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9105766">
BRITANNICA<a/>. 
Galileo
<br/>
Born: Feb. 15, 1564, Pisa [Italy]
<br/>
Died: Jan. 8, 1642, Arcetri, near Florence
<br/>
in full  Galileo Galilei
<br/>
Summary:
Italian natural philosopher, astronomer, and mathematician.
Made fundamental contributions to the sciences of motion, astronomy, and strength of materials and to the development of the scientific method. 
His formulation of (circular) inertia, the law of falling bodies, and parabolic trajectories marked the beginning of a fundamental change in the study of motion. 
His insistence that the book of nature was written in the language of mathematics changed natural philosophy to a mathematical one in which experimentation became a recognized method. 
Discoveries with the telescope revolutionized astronomy and paved the way for the acceptance of Copernicus.
His advocacy of that system eventually resulted in an Inquisition process against him.

<p/>
<a href="http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/galileo/">
STANFORD<a/>. 

<p/>
<a href="http://galileo.rice.edu/Catalog/NewFiles/galilei_gal.html">
The Galileo Project<a/>

<p/>
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galileo">
WIKI<a/>.

<p/>
<img src="http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/BigPictures/Galileo.jpeg"
height=
"300" />
<img src="http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/BigPictures/Galileo_2.jpeg"
height=
"300" />
<img src="http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/BigPictures/Galileo_3.jpeg"
height=
"300" />
<img src="http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/BigPictures/Galileo_5.jpeg"
height=
"300" />
<img src="http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/BigPictures/Galileo_9.jpeg"
height=
"300" />

<p/>
<img src="http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/BigPictures/Galileo_4.jpeg"
height=
"150" />
<img src="http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/BigPictures/Galileo_10.jpeg"
height=
"150" />
<img src="http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/BigPictures/Galileo_7.jpeg"
height=
"150" />
<img src="http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/BigPictures/Galileo_11.jpeg"
height=
"150" />

<p/>

<img src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/88/Galileo_facing_the_Roman_Inquisition.jpg"
height=
"500" />
<p/>
Galileo facing the Roman Inquisition, 1857 painting by Cristiano Banti.
<p/>


<H2>Kepler </H2>

Biography in Dictionary of Scientific Biography
<br/>
<a href="http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9105767">Encyclopaedia Britannica<a/>
(also: 
<a href="http://search.eb.com.ezproxy.csusm.edu/eb/article-9105767">Academic Edition<a/>,
requires campus password)
<br/>
Crater Kepler
<br/>
Crater Kepler on Mars

<p/>
<a href="http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/Biographies/Kepler.html">
MACTUTOR<a/>. 
Johannes Kepler
<br/>
Born: 27 Dec 1571 in Weil der Stadt, Württemberg, Holy Roman Empire (now Germany)
<br/>
Died: 15 Nov 1630 in Regensburg (now in Germany)
<br>
Summary: 
German mathematician and astronomer.
Postulated that the Earth and planets travel about the sun in elliptical orbits. 
Gave three fundamental laws of planetary motion. 
Also: optics and geometry.

<p/>
<a href="http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9105767">
BRITANNICA<a/>. 
Kepler, Johannes
<br/>
Born: December 27, 1571, Weil der Stadt, Württemberg [Germany]
<br/>
Died: November 15, 1630, Regensburg
<br/>
Summary:
German astronomer.
Discovered three major laws of planetary motion:
(1) the planets in elliptical orbits with the Sun at focus; 
(2) the time to traverse arc of an orbit  proportional to the area of the sector; 
(3) relationship between the squares of the planets' periodic times and the cubes of the radii of their orbits.
Kepler did not call these “laws,” but
celestial harmonies reflecting God's design.
Newton derived them: then called laws.

<p/>
<a href="http://galileo.rice.edu/Catalog/NewFiles/kepler.html">
The Galileo Project<a/>

<p/>
<a href="http://www.georgehart.com/virtual-polyhedra/kepler.html">
Kepler's Polyhedra
</a>

<p/>
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johannes_Kepler">
WIKI<a/>.

<p/>
<a href="http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/kepler/">
STANFORD<a/>. 
<br/>Summary: "Not yet available"

<p/>
<img src="http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/BigPictures/Kepler_6.jpeg"
height=
"400" />
<img src="http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/BigPictures/Kepler_7.jpeg"
height=
"400" />
<p/>
<img src="http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/BigPictures/Kepler.jpeg"
height=
"400" />
<img src="http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/BigPictures/Kepler_8.jpeg"
height=
"400" />


<p/><img src="http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/BigPictures/Kepler_5.jpeg"
height=
"200" />
<img src="http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/BigPictures/Kepler_11.jpeg"
height=
"200" />
<img src="http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/BigPictures/Kepler_10.jpeg"
height=
"200" />

<p/>

<img src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/1/19/Kepler-solar-system-1.png"
height=
"400" />

<img src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/2/25/Kepler-solar-system-2.png"
height=
"400" />

<p/>

Kepler's Platonic solid model of the Solar system from 
<i>Mysterium Cosmographicum</i> (1596).
This earlier conception was later abandoned by Kepler
in favor of his three laws.

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