Moving Heaven and Earth (Icon Science): Copernicus and the Solar System

When Nicolaus Copernicus claimed that the Earth was not stationary at the centre of the universe but circled the Sun, he brought about a total revolution in the sciences and consternation in the Church.

Copernicus' theory demanded a new physics to explain motion and force, a new theory of space, and a completely new conception of the nature of our universe. He also showed for the first time that a common-sense view of things isn't necessarily correct, and that mathematics can and does reveal...