If Johannes Kepler were still alive, he would celebrate his 450th birthday this Monday (27). The German astronomer and mathematician is among the thinkers who revolutionized science and the way we see and understand the universe, nature and life itself – along with big names like Galileo Galilei, Nicolaus Copernicus and Isaac Newton.
Born on December 27, 1571 on the outskirts of present-day Stuttgart, southern Germany, Kepler is mainly known for his so-called Kepler laws on planetary motion. Presented between 1609 and 1619, the three laws describe how the planets orbit around the Sun.
At that time, there was a strong divide between astronomy and physics, and Kepler wanted to bring the two disciplines closer together. And in doing so, it transformed scientific thinking.
Kepler’s Laws
It all started when Kepler discovered that Mars orbited the Sun in an elliptical path, that is, in an oval shape. This first discovery made Kepler realize that all planets moved at different speeds around the Sun in an elliptical orbit.
This advanced the previous heliocentric theory, proposed by the Polish mathematician and astronomer Nicolas Copernicus, according to which the planets orbited the Sun in a circular motion.
Kepler’s laws of planetary motion were essential to Isaac Newton’s law of gravity in the 1680s. Newton’s law states that all objects, or the particles that make up objects, attract each other with a gravitational force. And that explains why planets orbit the Sun.
law enforcement
Kepler’s laws are useful for understanding the motion of natural objects. They also help in understanding star systems and planets outside the Solar System.
The laws are used today to determine rocket trajectories and satellite orbits around the Earth. Satellites can be closer or farther from our planet, depending on where in their orbit they are — that’s the nature of an elliptical orbit.
This is important for planning, for example, when and where to capture images of the Earth or when it is more efficient to send data from one place on the planet to another via satellite.
When science and religion coexisted
Kepler was born at a time when the scientific community worked within the confines of religion and the Church. It was not always easy to reconcile the two worlds, and many philosophers and scientists paid for it.
In Kepler’s case, religion was a positive influence. He avoided calling his discoveries about planetary motion laws, considering them “heavenly harmonies” that reflected God’s plan for the universe.
All teaching was controlled by the institutions of the Church, both Catholic and Protestant. Kepler grew up in a Lutheran family. He received a scholarship through the Church, which propelled him on his scientific journey.
He attended a seminar at the University of Tübingen from 1859 onwards. People tended to graduate from these institutions to become professors or religious. Initially, Kepler planned to be a theologian.
Until he began studying under his mentor, Michael Mästlin, who introduced Kepler to Copernicus’ ideas. These played a central role in Kepler’s own discoveries.
The German thinker said that God had guided him to study the stars. He even believed that the sun symbolized God — a force around which countries revolved. An idea that Newton later revised.
Kepler’s story shows how science evolves, being in constant flux and movement, discovery and rediscovery. And how scientific thinking exists in the context of its time and the lives of thinkers.
.
