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Period: Jan 1, 1500 to
Scientific Revolution
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Jan 1, 1514
Nicholas Copernicus's heliocentric theory first arises in a privately distributed manuscript
Commentariolus [in English "The Little Commentary"] was a prequel to the book published by Copernicus just prior to his death. It circulated privately through his circle of friends and family, and perhaps other scientists, in order to spread his theory. He did not publish it until 1542. -
Jan 1, 1542
"On The Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres" is Published
"On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres" (originally "De revolutionibus orbium coelestium") Described a heliocentric universe, rather than the geocentric one promoted by the church. Nicholas Copernicus published it just before his death, knowing it would anger the church. -
Jan 1, 1573
Tycho Brahe publishes De nova stella
This book was based on very specific measurements which Tycho took himself. He recorded all his information and discredited a few theories which the church believed strongly. He also defied the idea of a geocentric universe- he believed the Moon and Sun revolved around the earth while other planets revolved around the Sun. He made more observations of the sky and planets than anyone else before -or during- his time. -
Galileo Galilei disproves Aristotle's theory about the properties of gravity
He dropped a 100 pound and a 1 pound weight from a tall height (reputedly the leaning tower of Pisa) and demonstrated that they land at the same time, disproving Aristotle's idea that objects will fall at a speed proportionate to their weight. -
Kepler published the first 2 Laws of planetary motion
Kepler discovered three total laws of planetary motion based on the works of his teacher, Tycho Brahe. He disagreed with how the information was interpreted, and he eventually founded these first two laws in 1609: 1) Law of Ellipses: the planets orbit the sun in an elliptical pattern and 2) Law of Equal Areas: the speed of planetary motion changes depending on distance from the sun -
Starry Messenger is published
Galileo publishes his booklet describing what he saw on the surface of the moon and Jupiter's moons. The church demandeed he quit spreading his ideas, but he refused. He first describes how he created his own telescope, then how he used it to view Jupiter, and at first thought it's moons were stars, and came to the realization they couldn't be. -
Galileo spreads the knowledge of the existence of sunspots
He confirmed the theory/idea of sunspots, originally discovered by Johannes Fabricius (German astronomer). He studied them for a period of several months, and decided based on his observations that the Sun rotated on an axis. He took detailed sketches (shown right) and notes, and based his theories on his information. -
Kepler publishes 3rd Law of planetary motion
The final law of planetary motion, which Kepler found several years after the first two, was discovered in 1619. It was known as the Law of Harmonies, which compares the movement of all the planets, claiming a similarity in their motions. -
Francis Bacon publishes "The Novum Organum"
The book was about philosphy and logic, but Bacon also described the "Baconian method", more popularly known as the scientific method, which led to more thorough scientific investigations. -
Death of Sir Isaac Newton
He is known among many as one of history's greatest physicists. He explained gravity, which determined how planets stay in orbit. He theorized about the empty space between planets in the galaxy, created the three famous laws of motion. He broke down barriers and answered questions which paved the way for the technology age. His death marks the end of the scientific revolution.
