Copernicus

[ koh-pur-ni-kuhs, kuh- ]

noun

1. Nic·o·la·us [nik-, uh, -, ley, -, uh, s], Mikolaj Kopernik, 1473–1543, Polish astronomer who promulgated the now accepted theory that the earth and the other planets move around the sun the Copernican System.
2. a crater in the second quadrant of the face of the moon, having an extensive ray system: about 56 miles (90 kilometers) in diameter from crest to crest with walls rising about 12,000 feet (3,650 meters) from its floor; having several central mountains the highest being about 2,400 feet (730 meters).

Copernicus

¹

/ kəˈpɜːnɪkəs /

noun

1. CopernicusNicolaus14731543MPolishSCIENCE: astronomer Nicolaus (ˌnɪkəˈleɪəs). Polish name Mikolaj Kopernik. 1473–1543, Polish astronomer, whose theory of the solar system (the Copernican system ) was published in 1543

Copernicus

²

/ kəˈpɜːnɪkəs /

noun

1. a conspicuous crater on the moon, over 4000 metres deep and 90 kilometres in diameter, from which a system of rays emanates

Copernicus

/ kō-pûr′nə-kəs /

1. Polish astronomer whose theory that Earth and other planets revolve around the Sun provided the foundation for modern astronomy. His model displaced earlier theories that positioned Earth at the center of the solar system with all objects orbiting it.

Derived Forms

• Coˈpernican, adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of Copernicus¹

First recorded in 1580–90; Latinized form of Kopernik, Koppernik, Koppernigk

Biography

Nicolaus Copernicus originally studied canon law and medicine in Italy in preparation for a career in the Catholic Church. While in Italy he became interested in astronomy, which he then pursued in his spare time while working as a church administrator in Frauenberg, Poland. In a brief essay, Commentariolis (Little Commentary), he introduced his heliocentric system, in which the Sun is at the center of the universe, with all the planets and stars revolving around it in circular orbits. Copernicus was trying to account for the movements of the planets that, in the days prior to the invention of telescopes, were visible to the unaided eye and that did not fit the older Earth-centered, or geocentric, model of the universe of the Greek astronomer Ptolemy. Copernicus published a longer, more complete account of his theory, De revolutionibus orbium coelestium (On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres), in 1543, just before he died. His heliocentric model of the universe was disputed by most astronomers of the time, as well as by the Church. After Copernicus's death, the few defenders of his ideas included Johannes Kepler and Galileo Galilei. De revolutionibus was on the Catholic Church's Index of Forbidden Books from 1616 to 1835. Theoretical support for Copernicus's system was provided almost 150 years after the publication of De revolutionibus by Sir Isaac Newton's theory of universal gravitation. His other great accomplishment was his proposal that the Earth rotates once daily on its own axis.

Example Sentences

As late as the 16th century, Copernicus was willing to depose Aristotle’s Earth from the middle of everything but still believed that the Earth and other planets revolved around the sun with a combination of circular motions.

From Science News

The Copernicus service is only one government organization that tracks temperature records—NASA’s climate center, for example, also typically makes an announcement in mid-January.

From Fortune

Copernicus proposed in the 16th century that the Earth revolves around the sun.

From Quanta Magazine

The Commission also pointed out that the EU’s satellite-based earth observation program, Copernicus, could be used to help identify new mining sites and to monitor their environmental performance.

From Fortune

Average temperatures in Siberia from December to May were also the warmest on record going back to 1979, according to Copernicus.

From Science News

Let us suppose that any one denying the theory of Laplace or the theory of Copernicus would be reviled as an "Infidel."

From Project Gutenberg

Seven years after the death of Copernicus, was born that strange mortal, Giordano Bruno.

From Project Gutenberg

When the old Ptolemaic system was exploded by Copernicus, the vaunted wisdom of men proclaimed that the Bible also was exploded.

From Project Gutenberg

Even Copernicus studied astronomy and medicine side by side and this combination of studies was not at all infrequent.

From Project Gutenberg

It would seem that the doctrines of Copernicus were offensive to churchmen on this narrow ground.

From Project Gutenberg