Latinized form of Niclas Kopernik, the name of the founder of the heliocentric planetary theory; born at Torun[Thorn], 19 february , 1473, died at Frankenburg, 24 May, 1543. Copernicus proposed that a rotating Earth revolving with the other planets about a stationary central Sun could account in a simpler way for the same observed phenomena of the daily rotation of the heavens, the annual movement of the Sun through the ecliptic, and the periodic retrograde motion of the planets. He was encouraged to publish his theories, but he was reluctant to do so. However, he relented and did publish them; they were handed to him the very day he died.

The German astronomer was the first strong supporter of the heliocentric theory of Copernicus; [refers to or measured from the Sun's center or appearing as if seen from it.Also, having or relating to the Sun as the center of the solar system.] Kepler was also the discoverer of the three laws of planetary motion. Kepler, always guided by the concept of beauty in the structure of the universe, and specifically by a theory of harmony in geometric figures, numbers, and music, especially in his Harmonices mundi [Harmomonies of the world, 1619], announced his third law--a relationship between the orbital periods and the distances of the planets from the Sun. His belief that the Sun regulates the velocity of the planets was a milestone in scietific thought, laying the foudation for Newton's theory of universal gravitation. The posthumous Somnium on which Kepler labored until shortly before his death, is indicative of his fertile mind. In this work, Kepler describes a journey to the Moon and discusses the existence of lunar inhabitants. A crucial link between the thought of Copernicus and that of Newton, Kepler was an important figure in thwe 17th-century scientific revolution.

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In the summer of 1609, Galileo heard about a spyglass that a Dutchman had shown in Venice. From these reports, and using his pwn technical skills as a mathmetician and a workman, Galileo made a series of telescopes whose optical performance was much better than that of the Dutch intrument. The astronomical discoveries he made with his telescope were described in a short book called Message from the stars[Sidereus Nunicus] published in Venice in May 1610. It caused a sensation. Galileo claimed to have seen mountainson the Moon, to have proved the Milky Way was made up of tiny stars, and to have seen four small bodies orbiting Jupiter. These last, with an eye on getting a job in Florence, he promptly named 'the Medican stars'[Galileo Galilei]. There eventually followed some expression of interest by the Inquistion. According to the Holy Church, Copericanism was in contradiction with Scripture, and in 1616 Galileo was given some kind of secret, but official warning that he was not to defend Copernicanism. Just what was said on this occasion was to become a subject for dispute when Galileo was accused of departing from this undertaking in his Dialogue concerning the two greatest world systems, published in Florence in 1632. Galileo, who was not in the best of health, was summoned to Rome, found to be vehemently suspected of heresy, and eventually condemned to house arrest, for life, at his villa at Arcetri. He was also required to state an oath before the Holy Roman Church in which he was forced to renounce his belief that the Sun was at the center of  the solar system.

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Edmund Halley{1656-1742} was a talented multidisciplinary scientist and was largely responsible for persuading Newton to publish his work. Halley's analysis of what is now known as Halley's comet is a perfect example of the scientific method in action. He observed that the comets of 1456, 1531, 1607, and 1682, followed similar orbital paths around the Sun and that each appearance was separated from the previous one by about 76 years--which was the period predicted for the orbit by Kepler's Third law.

Halley's hypothesis: These events were due to the appearance of one object on an orbit by kepler's Third law. Halley's hypothesis: These events were due to the reappearance of one object on an orbit which brought it close to the Sun once every 76 years. He then went on to predict that the comet would return in 1758. The comet was sighted, on schedule, on Christmas Day 1758 and has since borne Halley's name. Appearances of Halley's comet have been found in historic record as far back as 2000 years.go to top


 

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Albert Einstein (1896-1955)

During the late 1800's, the field of science desparately needed a new theory to revise the old Newtonian-based physics. The laws of Newton's principles were beginning to show problems; for example, the precession of Mercury's orbit could not be completely accounted for.Einstein revolutionized all aspects of science and modern thought through his theories of general and special relativity and idea of equivalence. Albert Einstein was taken seriously after rigourous testing of his theories. go to top


 

 
 
 

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Steven Hawking (1942- ) Dr. Hawking is a leading figure in modern cosmology. While studying physics and mathematics at the universities of Oxford and Cambridge, Hawking learned that he had the degenerative disorder of the nervous system known as Lou Gehrig's disease. Dr. Hawking was only given 2 1/2 years to live beyond 1966. He has beaten the odds and revolutionized modern science. When he Obtained his doctorate in 1966, he set out to link quantum mechanics and relativity, the two major theories of modern physics, by developing a quantum theory of gravity. Hawking's ongoing work indicates that quantum theory supports the model of the universe known as inflationary theory. His speculations include the existence of black holes no larger than elementary particles, and multiple universes linked by tiny quantum fluctuations in space that he calls "wormholes." In 1988, Hawking published a nontechnical explanation of his work called A Brief History of Time. "If we find the answer to that, (a complete theory of the universe), it would be the ultimate triumph of human reason - for then we would know the mind of God."-Stephen Hawking

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