Book Description
Masterly and authoritative, this account of Copernicus' heliocentric planetary theory relates astronomy's historical background and provides a fascinating portrait of the man who clarified the basis for modern cosmology. An introduction traces the roots of the search for the laws of planetary motion, and sketches the astronomer's career against the stormy political background of his era. The heart of this book offers an exposition of Copernicus' epochal treatise, De Revolutionibus, and subsequent chapters explore the progress and development of his theory through its culmination in Newtonian philosophy and its transformation by the doctrine of relativity. 1957 ed. 41 figures. 6 halftones.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

In the sixteenth century, Nicolaus Copernicus refuted the age-old belief that the earth stands at the center of the universe. This masterly and authoritative account of his heliocentric planetary theory relates the historical background while providing a fascinating portrait of the man who clarified the basis for modern astronomy.

An introduction traces the search for the laws of planetary motion from its roots in Babylonian and Greek astronomy, and sketches Copernicus' career against the stormy political background of his era. The heart of this book offers an exposition of Copernicus' epochal treatise, De Revolutionibus, which provided the broad outlines for our modern conception of the solar system. Subsequent chapters explore the progress and development of the Copernican theory through the works of Bruno, Brahe, Kepler, Galileo, and Descartes, as well as the theory's culmination in Newtonian philosophy and its transformation by the doctrine of relativity.