Feb. 19, 2026

Astronomy

Show Notes
Transcript

Question 1: Born on February 19, 1473, which Renaissance astronomer transformed science by arguing that Earth and the other planets orbit the Sun, most famously presented in his 1543 book De revolutionibus orbium coelestium?

Question 2: Using a telescope in 1610, Galileo observed that a certain planet shows a full set of phases like the Moon. Which planet’s phases proved it orbits the Sun, providing powerful support for heliocentric ideas?

Question 3: Kepler refined Copernicus’s ideas into precise laws of planetary motion. Which of Kepler’s laws states that a planet sweeps out equal areas in equal times as it orbits the Sun, revealing that planets move faster when closer to the Sun?

Question 4: Which planet in our solar system was discovered in 1846 after mathematicians predicted its position from the strange motions of Uranus—an early triumph of physics guiding telescope discovery?

Question 5: In 1965, two radio astronomers accidentally detected a faint glow coming from all directions in space, now seen as a baby picture of the universe. What is this signal called that provided strong evidence for the Big Bang?

You may also like ODD ONE OUT. a new podcast with Mark Ellison! Mark gives you 4 words, you decide which word does not belong. Three rounds daily, quick and fun,

Portions of today's trivia podcast were made with the help of AI.

WEBVTT

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Calirogus Shark Media. Hi. I'm Mark Ellison. In today's theme

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is Copernicus's Birthday. Astronomy, the Solar System and revolutionary scientific discoveries.

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Question one born on February nineteenth, fourteen seventy three, Which

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renaissance astronomer transformed science by arguing that Earth and the

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other planet's orbit the Sun, most famously presented in his

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fifteen forty three book De Revolutionibus Orbium Coalstium. Question two.

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Using a telescope in sixteen ten, Galileo observed that a

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certain planet shows a full set of phases like the Moon.

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Which planet's phases proved it orbits the Sun, providing powerful

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support for heliocentric ideas. Question three. Kepler refined Copernicus's ideas

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into precise laws of plantanetary motion. Which of Kepler's laws

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states that a planet sweeps out equal areas in equal

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times as it orbits the Sun, revealing that planets move

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faster when closer to the Sun. Question four? Which planet

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in our Solar System? Was discovered in eighteen forty six

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after mathematicians predicted its position from the strange motions of Uranus.

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An early triumph of physics guiding telescope discovery. Question five.

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In nineteen sixty five, two radio astronomers accidentally detected a

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faint glow coming from all directions in space, now seen

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as a baby picture of the universe. What is this

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signal called that provided strong evidence for the Big Bang?

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We'll be right back with these answers after this break.

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Welcome back. Question one. Who proposed the Sun centered model

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in De Revolutionibus? Answer Nicholas Copernicus. Copernicus born in Toron

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in modern day Poland, published De Revolutionibus in the year

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of his death. His heliocentric model challenged the long held

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Ptolemaic system and helped launch the scientific revolution. Question two,

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which planet's phases seen by Galileo support heliocentrism? Answer Venus.

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Venus displays crescence to gibbus phases because it orbits the

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Sun inside Earth's orbit. This observation refuted the strictly geocentric

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Ptolemaic model and strongly supported Sun centered arrangements. Question three.

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Which Kepler law is the equal area in equal time law? Answer?

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Kepler's second law. Kepler's second law, the law of areas,

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arises from conservation of angular momentum. It explains variable orbital

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speed along elliptical paths, replacing earlier circular epicycles. Question four,

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Which planet was found in eighteen forty six from math predictions?

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Answer Neptune. Urban Laverier and John Couch Adams independently predicted

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Neptune's location. Johann Gale then observed it at the Berlin Observatory.

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The discovery showcased the power of Newtonian gravitation. Question five

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What nineteen sixty five discovery is the afterglow of the

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Big Bang? Answer? Cosmic microwave background CMB radiation. Arno Penzias

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and Robert Wilson found the CMB while troubleshooting antenna noise

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its relic radiation from the early universe mapping conditions about

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three hundred eighty thousand years after the Big Bang. That

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concludes today's five daily trivia questions. I'm Mark Ellison, and

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today's questions were crafted with the help of AI technology.

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See you tomorrow.

Astronomy

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