Georg von Peuerbach

Georg von Peuerbach (also Purbach, Peurbach; Purbachius; born May 30, 1423 – April 8, 1461) was an Austrian astronomer, poet, mathematician and instrument maker, best known for his streamlined presentation of Ptolemaic astronomy in the Theoricae Novae Planetarum. Peuerbach was instrumental in making astronomy, mathematics and literature simple and accessible for Europeans during the Renaissance and beyond. Peuerbach's life remains relatively unknown until he enrolled at the University of Vienna in 1446. He was born in the Austrian town of Peuerbach in upper Austria. A horoscope published eighty-nine years after his death places his date of birth specifically on May 30, 1423, though other evidence only indicates that he was born sometime after 1421. He received his Bachelor of Arts in 1448. Georg's intellect was discovered by a priest of his hometown, Dr. Heinrich Barucher. Dr. Barucher recognized Peuerbach's academic abilities from a young age and put him in contact with the Augustinian provost of Klosterneuburg Monastery, Georg Muestinger. Georg Muestinge taught a course at the University of Vienna entitled Theoricae Planetarum. These lectures was the first that George von Peuerbach attended at the University of Vienna and inspired him to enroll. During his time at University of Vienna, Georg received a master of philosophy in 1446 and a second master's degree in 1448, studying mathematics under the guidelines of Johann von Gmünden. His curriculum was composed primarily of humanities courses, as was usual at the time. His knowledge of astronomy derived from independent study, possibly from studying under followers of John von Gmünden. During his enrollment, there were no professors of astronomy at the University of Vienna. However, under his tutelage astronomic studies emerged at the University of Vienna throughout the 15th and 16th centuries. Peuerbach observed the occultation of Jupiter by the Moon in 1451, signifying the beginning of his personal astronomy career.

About this result

This page is automatically generated and may contain information that is not correct, complete, up-to-date, or relevant to your search query. The same applies to every other page on this website. Please make sure to verify the information with EPFL's official sources.

Related concepts (9)

Related lectures (1)

Heliocentrism

Heliocentrism (also known as the Heliocentric model) is the astronomical model in which the Earth and planets revolve around the Sun at the center of the universe. Historically, heliocentrism was opposed to geocentrism, which placed the Earth at the center. The notion that the Earth revolves around the Sun had been proposed as early as the third century BC by Aristarchus of Samos, who had been influenced by a concept presented by Philolaus of Croton (c. 470 – 385 BC).

Regiomontanus

Johannes Müller von Königsberg (6 June 1436 – 6 July 1476), better known as Regiomontanus (ˌriːdʒioʊmɒnˈteɪnəs), was a mathematician, astrologer and astronomer of the German Renaissance, active in Vienna, Buda and Nuremberg. His contributions were instrumental in the development of Copernican heliocentrism in the decades following his death. Regiomontanus wrote under the Latinized name of Ioannes de Monteregio (or Monte Regio; Regio Monte); the toponym Regiomontanus was first used by Philipp Melanchthon in 1534.

Early modern period

The early modern period of modern history spans the period after the Late Middle Ages of the post-classical era (1400–1500) to the beginning of the Age of Revolutions (1800). Although the chronological limits of this period are open to debate, the timeframe is variously demarcated by historians as beginning with the fall of Constantinople in 1453, the Renaissance period in Europe and Timurid Central Asia, the end of the Crusades, the Age of Discovery (especially the voyages of Christopher Columbus beginning in 1492 but also Vasco da Gama's discovery of the sea route to India in 1498), and ending around the French Revolution in 1789, or Napoleon's rise to power.

Copernicus for Earth Observation MOOC: New Space Economy

Covers the Copernicus Program's services and space components for Earth observation.