Johannes Kepler
Astronomer, Mathematician, Astrologer
Background Information
Who was Johannes Kepler?
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Born on December 27, 1571
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German astronomer
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Studied to be a theologian
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Died November 15, 1630
Where is he from?
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Wurttemberg, Germany
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In the town of Weil der Stadt
What was his life like?
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​Grew up poor
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Family was Lutheran
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As a child, his eyesight was permanently impaired from the smallpox
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His father was a mercenary and killed when Kepler was the age of 5
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Showed interest in mathematics at a young age
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His mother showed him comets and a lunar eclipse when he was 9
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Educated in Latin
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Desired to become a Protestant minister
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Seen as intelligent and mathematically capable
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Studied to be a theologian at the University of Tubingen
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His math professor, Michael Maestlin, encouraged his fascination with astronomy
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At 23, Kepler was a professor of mathematics and astronomy
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Kepler's University
Who inspired him?
- His mother, Katharina Guldenmann
- showed him the moon transforming to the color red during a lunar eclipse, which Kepler remembers throughout his life
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Michael Maestlin, his math teacher, loaned Kepler a copy of “Six Books Concerning the Revolutions of the Heavenly Orbs” written by Copernicus
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Maestlin tutored Kepler about Copernicus’s ideas and works
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Nicolaus Copernicus (Kepler supported Copernicus’ heliocentric theory and studied his writing)
Michael Maestlin
Who did they work with?
- Tycho Brahe, Danish astronomer
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Kepler became the assistant of Brahe in 1600
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When Brahe died in 1601, Kepler replaced him as the Imperial Mathematician under Emperor Rudolph II (the most reputable appointment in math of Europe)
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Used Brahe’s previous data to discover one of his laws
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Corresponded with Galileo Galilei about Copernicus’ heliocentric theory
Tycho Brahe