Johannes Friedrich Kepler (1571 - 1630)

Born 27 Dec 1571 in Weil der Stadt, Freie Reichsstadt, Heiliges Römisches Reich

Ancestors

Died 15 Nov 1630 at age 58 in Regensburg, Freie Reichsstadt, Heiliges Römisches Reich

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Johannes Kepler is Notable.

Biography

Johannes Kepler was a mathematician, astrophysicist, and an astrologer. Kepler's theories on planetary motion and optics were groundbreaking, but his widely publicized defense of Copernicus caused him much trouble with the Church.

Johannes was born into poverty. His father was a mercenary and his mother was a camp follower and potion maker who was accused of witchcraft. He was conceived out of wedlock. Johannes was very interested in astrology and claimed to be conceived exactly 334 days, 9 hours, and 53 minutes before his birth at 4:37 am on May 16th 1571. He was relatively frail and sickly and suffered from myopia^[1]. Despite these hurdles Kepler had a strong intellect and earned a scholarship to study at the University of Tübingen. This came at a dangerous time in his country when Protestants and Catholics were engaged in war and his defense of Copernicus left him with no friends in either camp. Constantly relocating as a result, Kepler was still able to perfect his theories.

Johannes had originally intended to become a Lutheran pastor, but after studying in Tubingen he accepted a job as math and astronomy instructor at a Protestant Seminary in Graz. He left his job in 1598 to become the assistant of Tycho Brahe, who was also a Copernican astronomer. Once Tycho died, Johannes was promoted to succeed Tycho as the Imperial Mathematician by Kaiser Rudolph II. After the death of his first wife and son Frederich [Stubbe says Heinrich, but this must be a typo or the timeline does not make sense] he moved from Bohemia to Austria where he was remarried. Due to religious and political pressures, he again moved to Ulm and then to Silesia.^[2]

During this time he "published the Epitome Astronomiae in 1621. This was his most influential work and discussed all of heliocentric astronomy in a systematic way. He then went on to produce the Rudolphine Tables that Tycho had envisioned long ago. These included calculations using logarithms, which he developed, and provided perpetual tables for calculating planetary positions for any past or future date." Today he is remembered as one of the fathers of modern astronomy and physics.

Find A Grave Johannes Kepler Famous memorial; BIRTH 27 Dec 1571 Weil der Stadt, Landkreis Böblingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany; DEATH 15 Nov 1630 (aged 58) Regensburg, Stadtkreis Regensburg, Bavaria, Germany; Spouse: Susanne Kepler.^[3]

Sources

1. ↑ Unsourced family tree made by C. Stanley Stubbe in 1992
2. ↑ Unsourced family tree made by C. Stanley Stubbe in 1992
3. ↑ Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/8396584/johannes-kepler: accessed 06 November 2023), memorial page for Johannes Kepler (27 Dec 1571–15 Nov 1630), Find a Grave Memorial ID 8396584, citing Peterskirchlein, Regensburg, Stadtkreis Regensburg, Bavaria, Germany; Maintained by Find a Grave.

• The Britannica Guide to The 100 Most Influential Scientists (2007), pp. 18, 45, 70-75.
• http://galileo.rice.edu/sci/kepler.html
• Wikipedia: Johannes Kepler
• Wikipedia: Kepler's laws of planetary motion
• http://kepler.nasa.gov/Mission/JohannesKepler/#anchor778225
• List, Martha, "Kepler, Johannes" in: Neue Deutsche Biographie 11 (1977), S. 494-508 [Online-Version]; URL: https://www.deutsche-biographie.de/pnd118561448.html#ndbcontent

Research Notes

FamilySearch Person: LHN1-68H

nasa.gov | Planetary Physics: Kepler's Laws of Planetary Motion (https://science.nasa.gov/resource/orbits-and-keplers-laws/)