Copernican system

views updated May 14 2018

Co·per·ni·can sys·tem / kəˈpərnikən/ (also Copernican theory) • n. Astron. the theory that the sun is the center of the solar system, with the planets (including the earth) orbiting around it. Compare with Ptolemaic system.

The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English

Copernican system

views updated Jun 11 2018

Copernican system the theory that the sun is the centre of the solar system, with the planets (including the earth) orbiting round it, formulated by the Polish astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus (1473–1543). He proposed a model of the solar system in which the planets orbited in perfect circles around the sun, and his work ultimately led to the overthrow of the established geocentric cosmology. He published his astronomical theories in De Revolutionibus Orbium Coelestium (1543).

The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable ELIZABETH KNOWLES

Copernican System

views updated May 08 2018

Copernican System See LUNAR TIME SCALE.

A Dictionary of Earth Sciences AILSA ALLABY and MICHAEL ALLABY

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