~Aristarchus of Samos

-310-230 BCE
-Greek mathematician/astronomer, born on island of Samos
-invented type of sundial
-pupil of Strato of Lampsacus
-wrote a book where he estimated the relative sizes of the sun and moon
-incorrect estimates
-most famous for having proposed that Earth rotates on its axis, that it and the other planets revolve around the Sun, and that the stars are other suns, possibly with planets revolving around them as well
-model condemned as impious by Cleanthes
-rejected in his time

~Copernicus

-1473-1543 C.E
-born in Torin, Poland
-studied liberal arts at University of Cracow
-made many observations, mostly about eclipses, alignments, and conjunctions of the planets and stars
-concluded that Earth’s axis was not fixed but itself rotates, a phenomenon now known as the precession of the equinoxes, with a period of 25,772 years
-wrote a six-part book whose title in English is "Six Books Concerning the Revolutions of the Heavenly Orbs" outlining his model, but he never gave Aristarchus any credit for having proposed that same model some 18 centuries earlier

~Galileo

-1564-1642
-mathematician, scientist, engineer
-Born in Pisa, Italy
-called the father of modern science
-first scientist to perform actual experiments
-invented an early thermometer
-made his own telescope
-made objects appear 20x bigger than with the naked eye
-Discovered the moon isn't smooth, the sun has spots, Jupiter had 4 moons, Saturn has ears (rings), and Venus has phases
-the observation of Venus phases convinced him that Copernicus' heliocentric model was right
-pope of Catholic church let him write about it as long as he didn't advocate it
-put under house arrest if he renounced Copernicus' theory instead of being tortured

~Newton

-1643-1747
-English physicist and mathematician
-born in Woolsthorpe, Lincolnshire
-hard young life
-enrolled at Cambridge University
-all universities believed Aristotle (Earth was the center of universe)
-using a prism led to the practice of spectroscopy, which is used to study the chemical composition of stars and planets and of their atmospheres
-invented the reflecting telescope
-invented 3 laws of motion
-invented calculus
-arguably greatest scientist ever
-interested in religion and alchemy
-he was a wizard
-used Apparition
-furious with anyone who disagreed with him - not very nice
-used his power to punish enemies and reward friends
-sent many counterfeiters to gallows
-prime example of mad scientist: crazy, angry

~von Rheticus

-1514-1576
-known to Muggles as Georg Joachim Rheticus
-Austrian-born astronomer and mathematician
-studied with Copernicus as his only pupil
-published a book supporting heliocentrism in 1540
-wizard, educated here at Hogwarts
-excelled in everything, esp. astronomy
-invented telescope named after him
-observed Venus' phases long before Galileo
-Mars was brighter when it appears farther from sun
-his father was a crook and wizard in the muggle world
-surname originally Iserin
-liked helping others

~Mansour

-born in England July 30, 1929
-attended Hogwarts
-sorted into Hufflepuff
-well-liked
-fell in love with astronomy
-finished with Os every year, including NEWTs
-attained Ph.d in Astronomy at Cambridge in 1953
-experimented in 1970
-learned about heavy water

~Assignments

-Quiz
-Final exam
-Optional essay