Italian Renaissance astronomer and mathematician, professor at the University of Bologna. He was the teacher and collaborator of Nicolaus Copernicus, with whom he carried out decisive astronomical observations.
Domenico Maria Novara(1454 — 1504)
Domenico Maria Novara
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Frequently asked questions
Key Facts
- Born in 1454 in Ferrara, Italy
- Professor of astronomy and mathematics at the University of Bologna from 1483
- Teacher and collaborator of Nicolaus Copernicus, whom he hosted in Bologna around 1496-1500
- Carried out with Copernicus the observation of the occultation of the star Aldebaran by the Moon on 9 March 1497
- Died in 1504 in Bologna
Works & Achievements
An observation made with Copernicus and later cited in De revolutionibus: direct proof of their scientific collaboration.
Astronomical and astrological calendars published every year in Bologna, predicting eclipses and planetary positions.
Novara argued that the geographical coordinates set by Ptolemy had changed, suggesting a slow shift of the Earth's axis.
For more than twenty years, he held the chair of astronomy, passing on the legacy of Regiomontanus and training the next generation.
His role as teacher and collaborator to Copernicus helped awaken in him the doubts that would lead to heliocentrism.
Anecdotes
At the University of Bologna, Domenico Maria Novara took into his home a young Polish student named Nicolaus Copernicus, who had come to study canon law. Rather than being a mere professor, Novara made the young man his assistant for sky observations: together, they scanned the stars from the city's rooftops.
On 9 March 1497, Novara and Copernicus together observed the occultation of the star Aldebaran by the Moon. This carefully recorded observation would later be cited by Copernicus himself in his great work: it is one of the rare direct traces of their joint work.
Novara was an admirer of the ideas of Plato and the Neoplatonists. He dared to criticize certain values established by Ptolemy more than a thousand years earlier, suspecting that the position of places on Earth might have changed — an intellectual boldness that foreshadowed the critical spirit of his famous pupil.
Each year, as professor of astronomy at Bologna, Novara was required to publish an almanac forecasting the events of the coming year. These astrological predictions, blending the science and beliefs of the time, were eagerly awaited by the city's inhabitants.
Novara belonged to a prestigious scholarly lineage: he had been trained in the tradition of Regiomontanus, one of the greatest astronomers of the 15th century. He passed this heritage on to Copernicus, making Bologna an essential link in the chain that led to the astronomical revolution.
Primary Sources
Copernicus reports the observation made with his teacher Novara in Bologna, where they saw the Moon occult the brightest star of the Hyades (Aldebaran).
Rheticus describes Copernicus as having been in Bologna not so much the student as the assistant and witness to the observations of the most learned man Domenico Maria.
Novara, as holder of the chair of astronomy, signed the annual almanacs forecasting eclipses, planetary positions, and upcoming events.
Key Places
City in northern Italy where Novara was born in 1454, a brilliant center of the Este court and of humanist culture.
The oldest university in Europe, where Novara taught astronomy and mathematics and trained Nicolaus Copernicus.
Great university city where Novara spent most of his career and carried out his astronomical observations. He died there in 1504.
Capital of the Italian Renaissance and home of the Neoplatonism that inspired Novara to criticize ancient astronomy.
Liens externes & ressources
Références
Œuvres
Observation de l'occultation d'Aldébaran
9 mars 1497
Pronostications et almanachs annuels
vers 1483-1504
Critique de la latitude des lieux de Ptolémée
fin du XVe siècle
Enseignement de l'astronomie à Bologne
1483-1504
Formation de Nicolas Copernic
1496-1500
