Nicolaus Copernicus

Astronomer Nikolaus Copernicus was instrumental in establishing the concept of a heliocentric solar system in which the Sun rather than the Earth is the center of the solar system. Hello and welcome to Night School, the channel that will pass you the general knowledge that everyone should know. I'm Mrs. Motleva and today you will learn or be reminded of the Nikolaus Copernicus. I have to say he is fifth on my list of favorite people throughout history, so that means I do love him. So, who was Copernicus? Nikolaus Copernicus developed his own celestial model of a heliocentric planetary system circa 1508. He shared his findings in the Commentariolus. His second book on the topic, the Revolutionabus Orbium Coelestium, was banned by the Roman Catholic Church decades after his death in Fromberg, May 24, 1543. I don't know why, but I think that I was teaching school and that he was burned alive from the church. If you are in that group too, let me know down in comments. And I was thinking that until few years ago when I stumbled upon some article that taught me that is not the case, but I will explain a bit further in the video. Let's start with his early life and education. Nikolaus Copernicus or Nikola Kopernik in Polish was born February 19, 1473 in Turan, West Prussia. By the time he was born, Turan had ceded to Poland, rendering him a Polish citizenship. During the mid-1480s, Copernicus' father passed away. His maternal uncle, Bishop of Warmia Lukasz Watsonrod, generously assumed a paternal role, taking it upon himself to ensure that Copernicus received the best possible education. In 1498, Copernicus entered the University of Krakow, where he studied painting and mathematics. He also developed a growing interest in the cosmos and started collecting books on the topic, similar as we are now collecting some books in online games. By mid-decade, Copernicus received a Fromberg Canon Cathedral appointment, holding onto the job for the rest of his life, because the canon's position afforded him the opportunity to fund the continuation of his studies for as long as he liked. A job as being job took much of his schedule, so he was able only on his free time to pursue his academic interests. Imagine what would happen if he had more free time. While he was traveling in Italy, he enrolled in a religious law program at the University of Bologna, and there he met future housemate, astronomer Domenico Maria Navarra. I just want to observe them somehow, having conversations about astronomical ideas and observations. Let's move on, because I'm trying to imagine their conversations and I'm jealous! In 1501, Copernicus went on to study practical medicine at the University of Padua. He did not, however, stay long enough to earn a degree, since the two-year leave of absence from his canon position was nearing expiration. In 1503, Copernicus attended the University of Ferrara, where he took the necessary exams to earn his doctorate in canon law. He hurried back home to Poland, where he resumed his position as canon and rejoined his uncle at an episcopal palace. Copernicus remained at the Litzbark-Warminski residence for the next several years, working and tending to his elderly, ailing uncle, and exploring astronomy. In 1510, Copernicus moved to a residence in the Fromburg Cathedral Chapter. He would live there as a canon for the duration of his life. Now let's speak for his theory that made him famous, and how we know him or love him, it's up to you to decide. The Heliocentric Solar System Scholars believe, also me, that by around year 1508, Copernicus had begun developing his own celestial model, a heliocentric planetary system. During the second century AD, Ptolemy had invented a geometric planetary model with eccentric circular motions and epicycles, significantly deviating from Aristotle's idea that celestial bodies moved in a fixed circular motion around the Earth. In attempt to reconcile such inconsistencies, Copernicus' heliocentric solar system named the Sun greater than the Earth as the center of the solar system. Subsequently, Copernicus believed that the size and speed of each planet's orbit depended on its distance from the Sun. Though his theory was viewed as revolutionary and met with controversy, Copernicus was not the first astronomer to propose a heliocentric system. Centuries prior, in the 3rd century BC, the ancient Greek astronomer Aristarchus of Psamos had identified the Sun as a central unit orbited by a revolving Earth. But the heliocentric theory was dismissed in Copernicus' era because Ptolemy's ideas were far more accepted by the influential Roman Catholic Church, which adamantly supported the Earth-based solar system theory. Still, Copernicus' heliocentric system proved to be more detailed and accurate than Aristarchus', including a more efficient formula for calculating planetary positions. In 1513, Copernicus' dedication prompted him to build his own modest observatory. Nonetheless, his observations did, at times, lead him to form inaccurate conclusions, including his assumption that planetary orbits occurred in perfect circles. As German astronomer Johannes Kepler would later prove, planetary orbits are actually elliptical in shape. Around 1514, Copernicus completed a written work, Commentarios, or Latin for small commentary, a 40-page manuscript which summarized his heliocentric planetary system and alluded to forthcoming mathematical formulas meant to serve as proof. The sketch set forth seven axioms, each describing an aspect of the heliocentric solar system. First, planets don't revolve around one fixed point. Second, the Earth is not at the center of the universe. Third, the Sun is at the center of the universe and all celestial bodies rotate around it. Fourth, the distance between the Earth and Sun is only a tiny fraction of stars' distance from the Earth and Sun. Fifth, stars do not move, and if they appear to, it is only because the Earth itself is moving. Sixth, Earth moves in a sphere around the Sun, causing the Sun's perceived yearly movement. And seventh, Earth's own movement causes other planets to appear to move in an opposite direction. Commentarios also went on to describe in detail Copernicus' assertion that a mere 34 circles could sufficiently illustrate planetary motion. Copernicus sent his unpublished manuscript to several scholarly friends and contemporaries, and while the manuscript received little to no response among his colleagues, a buzz began to build around Copernicus and his unconventional theories. Copernicus raised a fair share of controversy with the Revolutionabus Orbium Coelestium, or On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres, his second work published right before his death. His critics claimed that he failed to solve the mystery of the parallax, the seeming displacement in the position of a celestial body when viewed along varying lines of sight, and that his work lacked a sufficient explanation for why the Earth orbits the Sun. The Church ultimately banned the Revolutionabus in 1616, though the book was eventually removed from the list of forbidden reading material. Nicolaus Copernicus died May 24, 1543, in Fromburg, Poland. Now, something about misconception which I thought Copernicus was burned alive at the stake. According to the Internet, of course, the misconceptions about Copernicus is the execution of Giordano Bruno, a philosopher who was known as a heretic and an advocate of Copernican theory. While he was condemned for other reasons, Bruno became known as the first martyr of the new science, after he was burned at the stake in the 1600s. So, if I'm not the only one that is thinking like that, there is the explanation about this. And here we will end with this lesson. I hope that I made some things clearer, and I hope we all learned something. If not, re-watch the video again, it's that easy. Until next time and the next lesson. Class dismissed. Thank you for sticking up until the end of the lessons. If you liked the video, hit that like button. If not, write in comment section down below. I feel ready for arguing there. Also, feel free to put some suggestions. For more lessons, hit that subscribe button and also hit that icon bell. I can wait, no worries. Come on, hit it.