Date of Award
Spring 2020
Presentation Date
4-29-2020
Document Type
Senior Essay
First Advisor
Elizabeth Hamm
Second Advisor
Joseph Zepeda
Abstract
Changing the center of the universe in the study of astronomy can have great consequences. Ptolemy believed that the heavens revolved around the earth, whereas Copernicus believed the planets orbited around the sun. This paper looks at both Ptolemaic geocentricity and Copernican heliocentricity and some of the elements, such as the calculation of the angle of solar eccentricity and the arrangement of the planets, that motivated this monumental change in the view of the center of the universe.
Recommended Citation
Corfield, Laine, "The Center Cannot Hold: The Shift From Geocentricity to Heliocentricity" (2020). Integral Program Senior Essays. 32.
https://digitalcommons.stmarys-ca.edu/integral-senior-essay/32
