Kepler’s data about the orbits of planetary bodies was supplied by his employer,
the Habsburg Emperor Rudolf II. Kepler was a mathematician and astronomer who worked for Rudolf II as his Imperial Mathematician. Rudolf II was a patron of the arts and sciences and had a keen interest in astronomy. He provided Kepler with data from the observations made by the renowned Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe. Brahe had collected extensive and accurate data on the positions of celestial bodies, including the planets. After Brahe's death in 1601, Kepler was appointed to continue analyzing and interpreting the data. This data played a crucial role in Kepler's development of his three laws of planetary motion, which are now known as Kepler's laws. Kepler's employer, Emperor Rudolf II, recognized the significance of Kepler's work and supported him in his research.
Kepler's data about the orbits of planetary bodies was supplied by his employer, which at the time was the astronomer Tycho Brahe. When Kepler was appointed as Brahe's assistant in 1600, he gained access to the wealth of observational data that Brahe had collected. This included extensive and precise measurements of the positions of the planets in the night sky over a period of many years. Brahe's observations were made using a range of instruments, including large quadrant-like instruments called mural quadrants and large astronomical sextants. These observations formed the foundation of Kepler's research and were crucial in his formulation of the three laws of planetary motion.
To determine where Kepler's data about the orbits of planetary bodies came from, we need to understand who his employer was during that time. Kepler's employer was Tycho Brahe, a Danish astronomer.
Tycho Brahe was a prominent astronomer in Europe during the late 16th century. He had access to state-of-the-art astronomical instruments and was known for his accurate observations of celestial objects. Kepler, at that time, was hired by Brahe as an assistant.
Kepler's work for Brahe involved analyzing and interpreting the extensive astronomical observations made by Brahe. Brahe had collected a vast amount of data concerning the motion of planets, particularly Mars. This data was gathered over many years of meticulous observations with precise instruments.
After Tycho Brahe's death in 1601, Kepler inherited his entire collection of observations. This vast dataset provided Kepler with the necessary data to formulate his famous laws of planetary motion. It is from this dataset that Kepler derived his groundbreaking conclusions about the nature of planetary orbits.
In summary, Kepler's data about the orbits of planetary bodies was supplied by his employer, Tycho Brahe, who meticulously observed and recorded astronomical data for many years.