The Copernican Revolution

• Sun Centered System of Planets

• The earth is just a planet

  • Deep philosopical implcations
  • The Church Forbids Galileo’s teaching - places him under house arrest (ca. 1640).
  • Not until 1820 does the Church admit that Galileo was correct.

• First real quantitative description by Kepler
  • Planets move in ellispses

• Illustration of how new observations can suddenly reveal truths
  • Phases of Venus, Moons of Jupiter reveal directly a planet orbiting the sun, moons orbiting a planet

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