Copernicus’ Birthday Marked by Google Doodle

Scientist, mathematician, astronomer and author Nicolaus Copernicus was born on this day in 1743. Copernicus’ authorship of De revolutionibus orbium coelestium (On the Revolutions of the Celestial Spheres), contributed greatly to scientific knowledge of the solar system.

The event is marked this year by a fantastic Google Doodle that illustrates Copernicus’ most celebrated achievement: the heliocentric theory that proved the Sun was as the center of the solar system, not Earth. This theory ended the notion that the Sun revolves around the Earth and cemented Copernicus’ position as the founder of modern astronomy.