The Scientific Odyssey

In this final episode devoted to the life of the Danish astronomer, Tycho Brahe, we look at his conflict with Nicolaus Reimers Bar (aka Ursus) as well as a number of other factors that led him to depart the island of Hven and eventually land in Prague where he would spend the last two years of his life.

This week we look at the construction of Uraniborg on the island of Hven and the astronomical work done on it.  We also discuss the ideas that informed the facility's founding and the social structure that supported its construction and operation. Tycho's observatory and laboratory was the premier scientific research institution of its time and it marked a transition in how science was done throughout Europe.

In Part 1 of our biography of the Danish astronomer, Tycho Brahe, we follow his life from the keeps and fortresses of his homeland to the universities of Germany.  We look into his interactions with the people around him including his wife, Kirsten Jorgensdatter, and look at the idea of amicitia that would so shape his worldview.

This week we look at the scientific work of Tycho Brahe and his Tychonic Model of the solar system.

This week we evaluate the Copernicus heliocentric model of the solar system and compare it to Ptolemy's geocentric model.  We then look at the model's reception by Erasmus Reinhold, Gemma Frisius, Michael Maestlin and Tycho Brahe.  We conclude with Brahe's observations of the supernova of 1572 and the Great Comet of 1577.

A continuation of the the biographies of Nicolas Copernicus and Georg Joachim Rheticus from the time of the two men's meeting through the end of Rheticus' life and the publication of his trigonometric tables.  Rheticus' work on the Narratio and the publication will be discussed as will the tragic outcomes of his career.  The timely encounter with Valentin Otto is also covered.

The first part of a biographical examination of the two men who started the Scientific Revolution, Nicolas Copernicus and Georg Joachim Rheticus.

In this episode we take a look at the scientific work of Nicolas Copernicus including the Commentariolus and On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres.  We look at the foundational principles of Copernicus' Heliocentric System and how it explains the motions of the planets.

A more in-depth look at the lives of Georg Peuerbach, Johannes de Regio Monte (aka, Johanes Muller, aka Regiomontanus) and Cardinal Basilios Bessarion with a specific focus on the years between 1454 and 1476.  The development of the Epitome of the Almagest is discussed as is the role of astrology in late medieval and early modern culture, specifically in relation to the practice of medicine.

We take a look at NASA's JUNO Mission and the news of last night's successful orbital insertion as well as the science mission to come.