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Part 1
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Nicolaus-Copernicus (Video about Copernicus)
Nicolaus Copernicus changed the way that people viewed themselves and their planet. Prior to 1514 it was thought that the earth was the center of the universe. In that year he wrote Commentariolus, which espoused a more heliocentric viewpoint; that the planets, including earth revolved around the sun and were part of a much larger universe. -
Part 2
This work also stated that the distance between the earth and the sun was very much smaller than that between all of the stars. In addition, the reason that the stars appeared to rotate around the earth was related to the earth's own movement, not that of the stars. The appearance of the movements of the sun and the changing seasons was related to the orbit of the earth around the sun, not the other way around. -
Part 3
This created an uproar because it appeared to go against passages in the Bible that were interpreted to mean that the earth did not move. This would imply that any movement in the sky would be due to the sun and the planets moving around the earth.
Copernicus was not the first person to arrive at this conclusion; however, he did develop mathematical calculations to accompany his claims that were very detailed and, in the long run, were shown to be accurate for the most part. -
Major Works
Copernicus, Nicolaus. Commentariolus. N.p.: n.p., 1514. Print.
Copernicus, Nicolas. De revolutionibus orbium coelestium. N.p.: n.p., 1543. Print. -
References
"Nicolaus Copernicus." Famous Scientists. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 Apr. 2017. https://www.famousscientists.org/nicolaus-copernicus/.
"BBC - History - Copernicus." BBC News. BBC, 2014. Web. 09 Apr. 2017.http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/copernicus.shtml
The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica. "Nicolaus Copernicus." Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica, inc., 24 May 2016. Web. 09 Apr. 2017.https://www.britannica.com/biography/Nicolaus-Copernicus -
References Part 2
Rabin, Sheila. "Nicolaus Copernicus." Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Stanford University, 30 Nov. 2004. Web. 09 Apr. 2017. https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/copernicus/.
"Nicolaus Copernicus." Biography.com. A&E Networks Television, 20 May 2016. Web. 09 Apr. 2017. http://www.biography.com/people/nicolaus-copernicus-9256984.