Nicolaus Copernicus

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Examine Aristotle's model of the solar system and note its failure to explain phenomena like retrograde motion

Study how Ptolemy tried to use deferents and epicycles to explain retrograde motion

See how Nicolaus Copernicus's heliocentric model replaced Aristotle's and Ptolemy's geocentric models

Nicolaus Copernicus: heliocentric system

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Nicolaus Copernicus summary

Nicolaus Copernicus

Q: Why is Nicolaus Copernicus famous?

Nicolaus Copernicus was an astronomer who proposed a heliocentric system , that the planets orbit around the Sun ; that Earth is a planet which, besides orbiting the Sun annually, also turns once daily on its own axis; and that very slow changes in the direction of this axis account for the precession of the equinoxes .

Q: Where did Nicolaus Copernicus study?

Nicolaus Copernicus studied liberal arts—including astronomy and astrology—at the University of Cracow ( Kraków ). He continued his studies at the University of Bologna and studied medicine at the University of Padua . He received a doctorate in canon law from the University of Ferrara, but he did not study there.

Q: What did Nicolaus Copernicus do for a living?

As a church canon, Nicolaus Copernicus worked for a bishopric in Poland collecting rents; securing military defenses; overseeing chapter finances; managing a bakery, brewery, and mills; and caring for the medical needs of the other canons. Copernicus’s astronomical work took place in his spare time, apart from these other obligations.

Q: How did Nicolaus Copernicus influence others?

Before Nicolaus Copernicus published his heliocentric theory, people generally agreed that the Moon and the Sun orbited the motionless Earth and that Mars , Jupiter , and Saturn were beyond the Sun in that order. Copernicus’s theory had important consequences for later thinkers of the scientific revolution, including such major figures as Galileo , Kepler , Descartes , and Newton .

Polish astronomer

Also known as: Mikołaj Kopernik, Nikolaus Kopernikus

Written by Robert S. Westman

Fact-checked by The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last Updated: Apr 9, 2024 • Article History

Nicolaus Copernicus

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Category: Science & Tech

Polish:: Mikołaj Kopernik

German:: Nikolaus Kopernikus

Born:: February 19, 1473, Toruń, Royal Prussia, Poland

Died:: May 24, 1543, Frauenburg, East Prussia [now Frombork, Poland] (aged 70)

Notable Works:: “De revolutionibus orbium coelestium libri VI”

Subjects Of Study:: Earth; Copernican system; heliocentrism; precession of the equinoxes; rotation

Role In:: Scientific Revolution

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Why is Nicolaus Copernicus famous?

Where did Nicolaus Copernicus study?

What did Nicolaus Copernicus do for a living?

How did Nicolaus Copernicus influence others?

Nicolaus Copernicus (born February 19, 1473, Toruń, Royal Prussia, Poland—died May 24, 1543, Frauenburg, East Prussia [now Frombork, Poland]) Polish astronomer who proposed that the planets have the Sun as the fixed point to which their motions are to be referred; that Earth is a planet which, besides orbiting the Sun annually, also turns 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. This representation of the heavens is usually called the heliocentric, or “Sun-centred,” system—derived from the Greek helios, meaning “Sun.” Copernicus’s theory ...(100 of 2914 words)

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