Scientific Revolution: Part 1

   Before 1543, the Earth was the center of everything in a geocentric universe. Ptolemy's idea was widely accepted as fact and was further pushed onto the masses by the Church, who believed God had made them special in their position in the cosmos. Everything orbited the Earth, not just the Moon. The five planets known at the time, the Sun, and an orb with fixed points (stars) as well. They believed the universe was in perfect balance, with the Earth the center of its order. This is where we begin....

   Nicolaus Copernicus was among the few who first challenged Ptolemy's and Aristotle's concepts of the universe. He was essentially changing the way we would view ourselves forever. In 1543, the year of his death, his book, De revolutionibus orbium coelestium, was published. In it, he put forth his theory of his heliocentric universe, a groundbreaking step in the direction for our modern view of our place in the cosmos. His proposal was met with vehement opposition from the Church for tearing humanity from its cherished position in the stars. His work was far from being widely accepted fact. It would take the help and provided evidence of many more scientists in the future before the public would even consider the heliocentric universe as a possibility. But this story will be picked up in the next post.

   So there you have it. Nicolaus Copernicus, a true visionary in science and physics. He is the framework for building up to a modern understanding of the universe. Anyways, more of this legendary story later. Until then, salutations!