Copernicus was born on the 19th of February, 1473 and died on the 24th of May, 1543.

He was born in Thorn, Royal Prussia, part of the Kingdom of Poland at the time.

The astronomical model that Copernicus developed was called heliocentrism (helios means Sun). It has the Sun motionless at the center of the Universe while the Earth and other planets rotate around it in circular paths.

A much earlier geocentric model (geo means Earth) created by Ptolemy featured Earth at the center of the Universe. This model was used by astronomers and other scientists for centuries before Copernicus developed his heliocentric model.

Many believe that the theory and ideas put forward by Copernicus started modern astronomy and were the beginning of a scientific revolution.

Copernicus's work ‘On the Revolutions of Celestial Spheres’ was published shortly before he died in 1543.

Copernicus's skills were not limited to just astronomy. Among other things, Copernicus was also a physician, scholar, economist, translator, mathematician, artist and diplomat.

Copernicus is believed to have spoken multiple languages, including German, Latin, Polish, Italian and Greek.

The chemical element Copernicum is named after Copernicus. It has the symbol Cn and atomic number 112.

Famous Nicolas Copernicus quotes include: “Finally we shall place the Sun himself at the center of the Universe.”

“For when a ship is floating calmly along, the sailors see its motion mirrored in everything outside, while on the other hand they suppose that they are stationary, together with everything on board. In the same way, the motion of the earth can unquestionably produce the impression that the entire universe is rotating.”