Copernicus: A Biography for Young Readers (Color Illustrations Edition)

Author: Shi Rongxin
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2003-08-01
Features: Nicolaus Copernicus (1473-1543), the great Polish astronomer, founder of the heliocentric theory, and the pioneer of modern astronomy. He was born on February 19, 1473, in the city of Toruń on the Vistula River in Poland. At the age of 10, he lost his father and was raised by his uncle, Wojciech Bonfin. At the age of 18, he entered the University of Kraków, where he was influenced by the humanist and mathematics professor Jan Dantysk, and resolved to dedicate himself to astronomical research. Three years later, he returned to his hometown. At that time, Wojciech Bonfin, who had become the Bishop of Frombork, sent him to Italy to study church law. Between 1497 and 1500, he studied at the University of Bologna, where he not only focused on church law but also pursued various disciplines, particularly mathematics and astronomy. His most influential teacher was the leader of the Renaissance movement, the astronomy professor Domenico Maria de Novara. On March 9, 1497, he made his only surviving astronomical observation record in Bologna: the moment when the Moon occulted Aldebaran (Regulus). While in Italy, Copernicus was recommended by his uncle and elected as a prelate of the Frombork Cathedral in 1497. In 1501, he returned to Italy from Poland and formally took the oath to join the clergy but soon took leave again to return to Italy. He first studied at the University of Padua, where he concurrently pursued law and medicine. In 1503, he obtained a doctorate in canon law from the University of Ferrara. In 1506, Copernicus returned to Poland from Italy. After his uncle's death in 1512, he settled in Frombork. As a prelate, Copernicus's duties were light, and he devoted most of his energy to astronomical research. He chose a tower on the city wall of the cathedral as his residence and selected the top floor with a door leading to the city's platform as his observatory. This place later became known as the "Copernicus Tower" and has been preserved as a sacred site for astronomy since the 17th century.
Copernicus's main contribution was the establishment of the scientific heliocentric theory, writing "the declaration of independence of natural science" — De revolutionibus orbium coelestium. At that time, Europe was in the late Middle Ages. The geocentric theory of Aristotle and Ptolemy had long been adopted by the Christian Church as a pillar of Christian doctrine. However, due to advancements in observation technology, the Ptolemaic system required about eighty epicycles and deferents to achieve results consistent with observations, and the number of such small circles was still increasing. Some progressive philosophers and astronomers were dissatisfied with this complex system. Copernicus embraced this progressive thought. While in Italy, he studied a large number of ancient Greek philosophical and astronomical works. He admired the academic spirit of the Pythagorean school and advocated expressing the laws of the universe through simple geometric figures or mathematical relationships. He learned that ancient Greeks like Aristarchus had proposed the theory of the Earth revolving around the Sun, which greatly inspired him. Copernicus analyzed the planetary motion in the Ptolemaic system and discovered that each planet had three common periodic movements: daily rotation, annual rotation, and a periodic movement equivalent to precession (see precession and nutation). He believed that if all three movements were attributed to the Earth, which Ptolemy considered stationary, the unnecessary complexity of his system could be eliminated. Therefore, Copernicus established a new cosmic system in which the Sun was at the center and remained stationary, while all planets, including the Earth, revolved around the Sun. Mercury was closest to the Sun, followed by Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. Only the Moon revolved around the Earth. Stars, meanwhile, were stationary on a distant celestial sphere far from the Sun. Copernicus attributed the governing force of the entire universe to the Sun, while each celestial body had its natural motion. He systematically and clearly critiqued the geocentric theory and addressed potential criticisms of the heliocentric theory from a physical perspective.
Copernicus spent "nearly nine years" calculating, verifying, and revising his theory. He wrote a short essay titled Commentariolus, which briefly introduced his theory and was hand-copied and circulated among his friends. However, he was reluctant to publish his main work, De revolutionibus orbium coelestium, for a long time. He was very aware that once his book was published, it would provoke attacks from various quarters. The criticism might come from two types of people: one was the stubborn philosophers who adhered to Aristotle and Ptolemy's views, considering the Earth the fixed center of the universe; the other was the clergy, who would label the heliocentric theory as heretical because the Bible clearly stated that the Earth was stationary. When Copernicus finally listened to his friends' advice and sent his manuscript for publication, he devised a plan to boldly dedicate his work to Pope Paul III in the preface. He believed that under the protection of this relatively enlightened pope, De revolutionibus orbium coelestium might see the light of day. In addition to this preface, De revolutionibus orbium coelestium also had another preface written by someone else. At that time, Copernicus was already seriously ill and entrusted the printing work to the clergy Osiander, who forged an anonymous preface to ensure the book's safe publication. The preface claimed that the theory in the book was not necessarily a true representation of the planets' actual motion but merely an artificial design to calculate star tables and predict planetary positions. This preface contained many praises of Copernicus, and a careful reader could easily discern it was written by someone else. However, this "deceptive sand" played a significant role, fooling many people for more than half a century. In the autumn of 1542, Copernicus was paralyzed by a stroke and by early 1543, he was near death. On May 24, when a printed copy of De revolutionibus orbium coelestium was delivered to his bedside, he was already in his final moments.
After its publication, De revolutionibus orbium coelestium attracted little attention. Most people could not understand it, while many astronomers, as Osiander had said, only regarded it as a method for calculating star tables. Although De revolutionibus orbium coelestium was criticized by Martin Luther seventy years after its publication, it did not attract the attention of the Roman Catholic Church. Later, when Bruno and Galileo openly promoted the heliocentric theory, which threatened the Church's ideological dominance, the Roman Catholic Church began to persecute these scientists and listed De revolutionibus orbium coelestium as a banned book in 1616. However, through the work of Kepler, Galileo, Newton, and others, Copernicus's theory continued to gain victory and development. The discovery of stellar parallax and aberration provided compelling evidence for the theory of the Earth revolving around the Sun. Copernicus's theory not only changed humanity's understanding of the universe at that time but also fundamentally shook the theoretical foundation of medieval European religious theology. "From then on, natural science began to liberate itself from theology," and "the development of science advanced by leaps and bounds."