Keplers Laws and Planetary Movement Essay - 1399 Words

By the turn of the 1600s, the way in which the solar system and the universe as a whole was viewed began to change. With the controversial conclusions of Copernicus, scientists already began to adopt the idea of a heliocentric solar system. Further advancements in astronomy came about through the research of Tycho Brahe and his assistant Johannes Kepler. The three planetary laws developed by Kepler with the data gathered by Brahe shaped the way in which science viewed the structure and motion of the planets of the solar system in profound ways, lasting to this day. A Brief History of Johannes Kepler Johannes Kepler began his studies in astronomy as an assistant to the astronomer Tycho Brahe, whom, by his own right, was a formidable†¦show more content†¦However, with the advent of calculus and Newton tackling the problem, it was proven that this was in fact the case for all celestial bodies. Formal Statement of Kepler’s First Law: Planets move in elliptical orbits with the sun at one focus of the ellipse. The above illustration exaggerates the actual orbit of a planet; an actual orbit is more circular with the two foci of the ellipse close together in the center, but explains the basic concept. With an elliptical orbit, a planet would not maintain a constant distance from a sun. It would, in fact, be closer to the sun at one point in its period than in others. Kepler’s Second Law The idea that Kepler sought most in his dealings with astronomy was a theorem that would have the capacity to predict where a planetary body would be at a particular time. This, of course, would require the knowledge of the velocity of the body at any point in its orbit. The key to solving this problem is finding the relationship between the different velocities of a planet as it travels through its orbit. Kepler’s solution to this problem involved making several assumptions. 1) All planets are driven by a force emanating from their axis of rotation, in other words, the sun. Although we now know this force to be gravity, Kepler viewed it as a ray coming from the sun and acting of a planet as a paddle acts on a boat. 2) This force would decrease at a rate of the inverse of the radius fromShow MoreRelatedEssay on The Scientific Revolution1344 Words   |  6 Pagesconcept of divine design were Robert Boyle (1627 -1691), Johannes Kepler (1571-1630) and Sir Issac Newton (1642- 1727). Boyle’s Law demonstrated how the inverse relationship between pressure and volumes of gas is representative of the concept of cause and effect. Kepler’s First Law of Planetary Motion demonstrates how God designed the universe like a mechanism. Newton’s Law of Universal Gravitation shows how God designed the universe according to mathematical principles. 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