2 (b.b.) Heliocentric
Not everybody believed in the geocentric system. Copernicus correctly placed the sun at the center of the planets. This sun-centered model is called a heliocentric (hee lee oh sen trik) system. Helios is Greek for “sun.” In a heliocentric system, Earth and the other planets revolve around the sun. This model was not well received in ancient times, however, because people could not accept that Earth is not at the center of the universe.
The Copernican Revolution: In 1543, the Polish astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus further developed the heliocentric model. Copernicus was able to work out the arrangement of the known planets and how they move around the sun. Copernicus’s theory would eventually revolutionize the science of astronomy. But at first, many people were unwilling to accept his theory. They needed more evidence to be convinced.
However, evidence collected by the Italian scientist Galileo Galilei gradually convinced others that the heliocentric model was correct.
Galileo used the newly invented telescope to make discoveries that supported the heliocentric model. For example, in 1610, Galileo used a telescope to discover four moons revolving around Jupiter. The motion of these moons proved that not everything in the sky revolves around Earth. So Copernicus correctly placed the sun at the center of the planets.
The Copernican Revolution: In 1543, the Polish astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus further developed the heliocentric model. Copernicus was able to work out the arrangement of the known planets and how they move around the sun. Copernicus’s theory would eventually revolutionize the science of astronomy. But at first, many people were unwilling to accept his theory. They needed more evidence to be convinced.
However, evidence collected by the Italian scientist Galileo Galilei gradually convinced others that the heliocentric model was correct.
Galileo used the newly invented telescope to make discoveries that supported the heliocentric model. For example, in 1610, Galileo used a telescope to discover four moons revolving around Jupiter. The motion of these moons proved that not everything in the sky revolves around Earth. So Copernicus correctly placed the sun at the center of the planets.
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