Kepler derived the three laws of planetary motion which changed the model of the Solar System and the orbital path of planets.
Explanation
The historical models of the Solar System began during prehistoric periods and is updated to this day. The models of the Solar System throughout history were first represented in the early form of cave markings and drawings, calendars and astronomical symbols. Then books and written records then became the main source of information that expressed the way the people of the time thought of the Solar System.
New models of the Solar System are usually built on previous models, thus, the early models are kept track of by intellectuals in astronomy, an extended progress from trying to perfect the geocentric model to eventually using the heliocentric model of the Solar System. The uses of the Solar System model began as a time source to signify particular periods during the year and also a navigation source which is exploited by many leaders from the past.
Astronomers and great thinkers of the past were able to record observations and attempt to formulate a model that accurately interprets the recordings. This scientific method of deriving a model of the Solar System is what enabled progress towards more accurate models to have a better understanding of the Solar System that we are in..
In 1609, Johannes Kepler, using his teacher's (Tycho Brahe) accurate measurements, noticed the inconsistency of the geocentric model and confirmed the heliocentric model is a more accurate and consistent model. Kepler derived the three laws of planetary motion which changed the model of the Solar System and the orbital path of planets. The three laws of planetary motion are:
All planets orbit the Sun in elliptical orbits and not perfectly circular orbits.
The radius vector joining the planet and the Sun has an equal area in equal periods.
The square of the period of the planet (one revolution around the Sun) is proportional to the cube of the average distance from the Sun.
The third law explains the periods that occur during the year which relates the distance between the Earth and the Sun.
Galileo's discoveries
With the help of the telescope providing a closer look into the sky, Galileo Galilei proved the heliocentric model of the Solar System. Galileo observed the phases of Venus's appearance with the telescope and was able to confirm Kepler's first law of planetary motion and Copernicus's heliocentric model. Galileo claimed that the Solar System is not only made up of the Sun, the Moon and the planets but also comets. ย By observing movements around Jupiter, Galileo initially thought that these were the actions of stars. However, after a week of observing, he noticed changes in the patterns of motion in which he concluded that they are moons, four moons.
Newton's interpretation
After all these theories, people still did not know what made the planets orbit the Sun. Until the 16th century when Isaac Newton introduced The Law of Universal Gravitation. This theory claimed that between any two masses, there is an attractive force between them proportional to the inverse of the distance squared.
