Planetary Motions : A Historical Perspective

Gravity, the laws of motion, forces and fields, the mathematical nature of the science - all of these ideas play a central role in understanding physics.

The one thing connecting all of these physical concepts is the desire of the great scientists of the past to understand the motion of the planets of the solar system.

This desire led to the revolutionary work of Copernicus and Galileo, Kepler and Newton, work that forever altered how science is practiced and understood. "Planetary Motions" enables students to understand how the discoveries of the Scientific Revolution affect the way physics is practiced today.

Scientists featured include: Nicolas Copernicus, whose revolutionary work placed the sun, rather than the earth, at the centre of the soar system; Galileo, who destroyed the ancient physics of Aristotle; Johannes Kepler, whose laws described how the planets revolve around the sun; and Isaac Newton, whose work remains the centre of classical physics as studied in classrooms today.

Jargon and mathematics is kept to a minimum, and the volume includes a timeline and an annotated bibliography of useful print and online works for further research. "Planetary Motions" is an ideal introduction for students studying physics and astronomy and who need to understand the history and nature of the scientific enterprise.