Saturday, August 11, 2012

astro picture for the day


Credit & Copyright: Jean-Charles Cuillandre (CFHT), Hawaiian Starlight, CFHT

------------------------------quote for the day-----------------------------------------------------

"Free in mind must he be who desires to have understanding" - George Joachim Rheticus

Rheticus as he liked to call himself(because he learned Latin; he changed his name) persuaded Copernicus to publish his book about the heliocentric theory of the solar system.  This is all the more curious since it appears that the Copernicus got the Heliocentric idea from various people in Padua while he was learning mathematics and astronomy there.   Those people were too close to rome to publish.  As for Copernicus, he may have had misgivings about it himself; he may have been Catholic and didn't want to shake up the faith.  Rheticus was protestant and was willing to shake up a few people's faith.

Rheticus appears to not have been the most rational person around either.  He made an astrological epistle showing how the new heliocentric theory predicts the fall of the Roman and Arab spain empires and the age of the universe to 6000 years.

As for the Catholic Roman Vatican, they were initially willing to embrace the theory; but, that was only because they considered it 'just a theory.'  If it were to prove real, then they'd have a problem. 

-more interesting stuff about Rheticus; he noticed there was a problem with the orbit of Mars.  Johanes Kepler even knew that Rheticus noticed this before him. This is interesting.  Generally speaking, a scientists is suppose to throw out a theory if just one data point disproves it.  But, Rheticus and Copernicus chose not to throw out the Heliocentric hypothesis.

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