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Johannes Kepler
JOHANNES KEPLER, astronomer (1571 to 1630), spent the years from 1612 to 1626 in Linz on the Danube. During the 14 years of his stay he completed the five books of his world harmony, "Harmonice mundi libri V", and a series of smaller astronomical and mathematical writings such as the "Treatise on Copernican Astronomy".
In Linz Johannes Kepler got involved in religious disputes against his will because he was a supporter of the Lutherian reformation. It was also during this period that he had to travel to Württemberg where he had to intervene in a witch trial against his mother.
Johannes Kepler made the decisive contribution towards the fulfillment of the Copernican revolution when he succeeded in discovering the laws ruling the movements of the planets around the sun, which were called after him:- The planets move in ellipses in one of the focuses of which the sun stands.
- The radius vector, that is the connecting line sun-planet, sweeps equal areas in equal times.
- The squares of the periods of revolution of the planets are as the cubes of their mean distances from the sun.
As mechanical explanation of the orbits of the planets Kepler already maintained a mutual attraction of heavy bodies. Sir Isaac Newton (1643 to 1727) succeeded in deducting the universal law of gravitation from Kepler's laws. The first step towards overcoming the laws of gravitation had been accomplished.
As a scientist striving towards enlightenment, as a bold fighter against the darkness of his times, Johannes Kepler is one of the great founders of a culture based on scientific knowledge, liberality and, at the same time, aesthetic sensibility. Kepler's laws have opened up new dimensions and new visions for mankind.
Ars Electronica, the festival for art, technology and society in Linz therefore adopts the great scientist and humanist Johannes Kepler as a symbol of its goals.
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