Nicolaus Copernicus's scientific ideas regarding the universe and specifically the idea of heliocentrism were at odds with the generally accepted ideas of his time. It was difficult for people to accept these new ideas, made even more difficult by the Catholic Church's powerful opposition to them for some time.
Arguably, Copernicus' biggest obstacle was the church. The church supported the Ptolemaic view that the universe consisted of 10 concentric spheres with Earth at the center and heaven outside. Questioning this philosophy meant upsetting the church, which had the authority to capture Copernicus. He thus kept the idea of heaven outside the universe, but made a heliocentric conception nonetheless.
Actually, no one challenged his theory. In fact the next real astronomer, to even come back to his theory was Galileo, who came around fifty years later. There were absolutely no challenges to his theory, but between the fifty years of Copernicus's death, and Galileo proving Copernicus right, his theory was shunned, and the church passed a law that saying his name was illegal.
Galileo did not have his own theory. He was a supporter of Copernicus's heliocentric theory and an opponent of the geocentric Ptolemaic theory. Eventually both theories were rejected in favour of Kepler's theory. But Kepler's theory uses the heliocentric idea from Copernicus's theory.
Galileo did not propose a heliocentric theory, he agreed with Copernicus and his heliocentric theory. The Catholic church, at the time, disagreed and they held a huge amount of power and put him on trial.
Nicolaus Copernicus was the Polish scholar who published a heliocentric theory in his treatise 'On the Revolution of the Heavenly Spheres' in 1543. This theory proposed that the Sun, rather than the Earth, was the center of the universe, leading to significant changes in our understanding of the cosmos.
Yes, Galileo and Newton built upon Copernicus' heliocentric theory of the universe by providing further evidence and support through their own observations and laws of motion. Galileo's telescopic observations confirmed Copernicus' model, while Newton's laws of motion and universal gravitation explained the physical principles behind the heliocentric system.
Galileo
He knew that the church would oppose his theories.
Copernicus was in 1543, a polish astronomer named Nicolaus Copernicus. Copernicus's theory - The sun is at the center of the Universe. Galileo Galilei was in 1609, Galileo became the first person to use a telescope to observe celestial bodies.
Contrary to most people of the 14th Century, Copernicus believed that the Earth revolved around the sun. Galileo later proved Copernicus' theory to be correct.
The discovery did not support Copernicus's theory directly but it raised doubts about the ancient theory of Ptolemy that said that all objects in the sky are in orbit round the Earth. Galileo was an aggressive supporter of Copernicus's theory but eventually it was Kepler's theory that became accepted and is still used today. Both Copernicus and Kepler placed the Sun at the centre but Kepler's elliptical orbits are supported by the later theory of dynamics.
Actually, no one challenged his theory. In fact the next real astronomer, to even come back to his theory was Galileo, who came around fifty years later. There were absolutely no challenges to his theory, but between the fifty years of Copernicus's death, and Galileo proving Copernicus right, his theory was shunned, and the church passed a law that saying his name was illegal.
Galileo was allowed to publish his findings as theory, which was a major relaxation of Catholic doctrine. Instead, he published them as fact.
The two main proponents in the early days were Nicolas Copernicus and Galileo.
Copernicus proposed the theory of a heliocentric model while Galileo improved the telescope, studied Jupiter's moons, and supported the heliocentric model
Galileo did not have his own theory. He was a supporter of Copernicus's heliocentric theory and an opponent of the geocentric Ptolemaic theory. Eventually both theories were rejected in favour of Kepler's theory. But Kepler's theory uses the heliocentric idea from Copernicus's theory.
Galileo did not propose a heliocentric theory, he agreed with Copernicus and his heliocentric theory. The Catholic church, at the time, disagreed and they held a huge amount of power and put him on trial.
Nicolaus Copernicus was the Polish scholar who published a heliocentric theory in his treatise 'On the Revolution of the Heavenly Spheres' in 1543. This theory proposed that the Sun, rather than the Earth, was the center of the universe, leading to significant changes in our understanding of the cosmos.