Copernicus was a mathematician and astronomer during the Renaissance. He was the first person to argue that the Sun is at the center of the solar system, not the Earth. The appearances of objects in the heavens have from the earliest historic ages filled men with wonder and awe. Then they gradually became a source of questioning, and thinkers sought explanations of the daily and nightly phenomena of sun, moon, and stars. Scientific astronomy, however, was an impossibility until an exact system of chronology was devised. Meanwhile, men puzzled over the shape of the earth and its position in the universe. They wondered what the stars were and why the positions of some shifted. And they wondered what those fiery comets were that occasionally appeared and struck terror to their hearts.
How does the author show that Copernicus's theory marked a significant change from early astronomy?
The second paragraph shows how unsure early observers and astronomers were about the construction of the universe.
The second paragraph compares and contrasts Copernicus with early observers and astronomers.
The second paragraph shows that Copernicus was naturally more intelligent than early observers of the solar system.
The second paragraph suggests that Copernicus explained the answer to every mystery about the solar system.
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The second paragraph shows how unsure early observers and astronomers were about the construction of the universe.