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276 BCE
Eratosthenes
Astronomer and mathematician who accurately measured the circumference of the Earth. -
100
Claudius Ptolemy
His first major astronomical work, the Almagest, was completed about 150 CE and contains reports of astronomical observations that Ptolemy had made over the preceding quarter of a century. T -
Feb 19, 1473
Nicolaus Copernicus
Heliocentrism is the astronomical model in which the Earth and planets revolve around the Sun at the center of the Solar System. -
Dec 27, 1571
Johannes Kepler
German astronomer who discovered three major laws of planetary motion, conventionally designated as follows: (1) the planets move in elliptical orbits with the Sun at one focus; (2) the time necessary to traverse any arc of a planetary orbit is proportional to the area of the sector between the central body and that arc (the “area law”); and (3) there is an exact relationship between the squares of the planets’ periodic times and the cubes of the radii of their orbits (the “harmonic law”). -
Nov 11, 1572
Tycho Brahe
November 11, 1572. He saw a light brighter than Venus, a star. -
Sir Isaac Newton
Newton developed the three laws of motion which form the basic principles of modern physics. His discovery of calculus led the way to more powerful methods of solving mathematical problems. -
Albert Eintein
German-born theoretical physicist who developed the theory of relativity, one of the two pillars of modern physics. His work is also known for its influence on the philosophy of science.