Astronomy in 16th and 17th Centuries and the Ways in Which It Changed Scientific Thinking and Methods
In the sixteenth and seventeenth centaury in Europe there were was a scientific triumph that led to insight and new information of astronomy. Scientist such as Copernicus, Kepler, Galileo, and newton questioned the scientific methods of Ptolemy and Aristotle. These scientists changed the beliefs of their followers to create a more modern way of life.
In the sixteenth century, the beliefs of Aristotelian-Ptolemaic were accepted by society. The geocentric theory was one of many that was created during this centaury. This theory is the belief that planets were perfect circles, and objects were pulled down due to their compositions. However Copernicus created new theories such as the heliocentric theory which contradicted the older ideas. The heliocentric theory was based off of reasoning and math. In addition this theory proclaimed that the universe is enormous. Copernicus 's theories were rapidly attacked by religious leaders, mainly protestants. At first john Calvin was lenient towards his ideas and Martin Luther spoke of him as a fool. The catholic church was livid because people were starting to grow further away from the church and starting to question the church and its knowledge.
Further more Kepler and his assistant Galileo challenged the traditional scientific teachings. Kepler was a mathematician, astrologer, and a scientific genius. He contradicted Copernicus 's beliefs and came to the conclusion that the orbits of the planets were ellipses. He showed that the distance is a planet from the sun effects the speed in which it orbits in. The closer a planet is to the sun in its elliptical orbit the faster it moves. Before Galileo it was thought that heavier objects would hit the ground faster then the lighter object. In 1591 Galileo dropped a ten pound weight and a one pound weight from the Leaning Tower of Pisa and proved that weight can vary but still hit the ground at the same time when dropped from the same height at the same time.
In the sixteenth century, the beliefs of Aristotelian-Ptolemaic were accepted by society. The geocentric theory was one of many that was created during this centaury. This theory is the belief that planets were perfect circles, and objects were pulled down due to their compositions. However Copernicus created new theories such as the heliocentric theory which contradicted the older ideas. The heliocentric theory was based off of reasoning and math. In addition this theory proclaimed that the universe is enormous. Copernicus 's theories were rapidly attacked by religious leaders, mainly protestants. At first john Calvin was lenient towards his ideas and Martin Luther spoke of him as a fool. The catholic church was livid because people were starting to grow further away from the church and starting to question the church and its knowledge.
Further more Kepler and his assistant Galileo challenged the traditional scientific teachings. Kepler was a mathematician, astrologer, and a scientific genius. He contradicted Copernicus 's beliefs and came to the conclusion that the orbits of the planets were ellipses. He showed that the distance is a planet from the sun effects the speed in which it orbits in. The closer a planet is to the sun in its elliptical orbit the faster it moves. Before Galileo it was thought that heavier objects would hit the ground faster then the lighter object. In 1591 Galileo dropped a ten pound weight and a one pound weight from the Leaning Tower of Pisa and proved that weight can vary but still hit the ground at the same time when dropped from the same height at the same time.