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Yes it was, because the Greeks believed that the planets must follow the perfect shape, the circle.

We now know the planets travel in ellipses, but in those days Ptolemy allowed for that by introducing the idea of epicycles. An epicycle is a small circle whose centre travels round a bigger circle, and the planet travels round the epicycle.

A circle and an epicycle is a very accurate model of an ellipse provided the eccentricity factor is small, as it is for most of the planets, which is why it took over 1400 years for this concept to be questioned.

A further complication was that the Greeks believed the Earth was at the centre. We now know that the Sun is at the centre, but Ptolemy's model had to allow for the observed effects by introducing extra epicycles. For the inner planets these 'spurious' eipcycles were very large.

In the end the Ptolemaic model was very complicated, with 40-50 epicycles altogether.

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Who proposed the geocentric model of the universe?

The geocentric model of the universe was proposed by ancient Greek astronomers like Aristotle and Ptolemy. This model placed the Earth at the center of the universe with celestial bodies orbiting around it.


What was ptolemys evidence for his space theory?

Ptolemy put the Earth at the center of his model of the universe , and said that the Sun , the moons , the planets ,the asteroids , comets , and meteors orbit the Earth and the Earth was the center of the universe.


What evidence did Ptolemy have?

Ptolemy used observational data gathered by previous astronomers, such as Hipparchus, to develop his geocentric model of the universe. He believed that the Earth was at the center of the universe based on observations that celestial bodies moved in complex patterns in the sky.


Who proposed the Ptolemaic universe theory?

The Ptolemaic universe theory was proposed by the ancient Greek astronomer Claudius Ptolemy in the 2nd century AD. He proposed a geocentric model of the universe with Earth at the center, and this theory dominated Western astronomy for over a thousand years.


Who could not predict the movements of the planets accurately?

Ancient astronomers like Ptolemy and Copernicus could not accurately predict the movements of the planets because they were working with models that did not accurately capture the true nature of the solar system. Their geocentric models, which placed the Earth at the center of the universe, were unable to accurately predict the movements of the planets due to their circular orbits and epicycles. It wasn't until Johannes Kepler formulated his laws of planetary motion based on observations by Tycho Brahe that more accurate predictions became possible.

Related Questions

Who proposed the geocentric model of the universe?

The geocentric model of the universe was proposed by ancient Greek astronomers like Aristotle and Ptolemy. This model placed the Earth at the center of the universe with celestial bodies orbiting around it.


How do planets move according to the geocentric model of the universe?

A Geocentric model of the solar system would be where the Earth was at the centre of the system, while the sun and planets revolved around the Earth. We now know this not to be true, since the sun is at the centre of the solar system (Heliocentric).


What was ptolemys evidence for his space theory?

Ptolemy put the Earth at the center of his model of the universe , and said that the Sun , the moons , the planets ,the asteroids , comets , and meteors orbit the Earth and the Earth was the center of the universe.


What evidence did Ptolemy have?

Ptolemy used observational data gathered by previous astronomers, such as Hipparchus, to develop his geocentric model of the universe. He believed that the Earth was at the center of the universe based on observations that celestial bodies moved in complex patterns in the sky.


Who proposed the Ptolemaic universe theory?

The Ptolemaic universe theory was proposed by the ancient Greek astronomer Claudius Ptolemy in the 2nd century AD. He proposed a geocentric model of the universe with Earth at the center, and this theory dominated Western astronomy for over a thousand years.


Whose theory of the universe was proven wrong?

The Ptolemaic theory (geocentric) put forth by Claudius Ptolemy (100-170 AD) was based partly on the work of Aristotle. It was replaced by the Copernican theory (heliocentric) beginning around 1400 AD.


Who could not predict the movements of the planets accurately?

Ancient astronomers like Ptolemy and Copernicus could not accurately predict the movements of the planets because they were working with models that did not accurately capture the true nature of the solar system. Their geocentric models, which placed the Earth at the center of the universe, were unable to accurately predict the movements of the planets due to their circular orbits and epicycles. It wasn't until Johannes Kepler formulated his laws of planetary motion based on observations by Tycho Brahe that more accurate predictions became possible.


What is the definition for ptolemy universe theory?

late 1500s ======================== There's nothing too startling about that answer, until you consider the fact that Ptolemy died around the year AD 178. Yes, he wrote about the "geocentric" (Earth centered) theory around the year AD 150. He didn't "come up with" the theory, but he perfected it.


Who is the first astronomer to formulate a scientifically based geocentric cosmology of the universe?

Claudius Ptolemy, who lived in Alexandria, Egypt, from about AD 90-168, published the earliest known systematic astronomical text which described a geocentric system of celestial mechanics, called the Almagest. Ptolemy was probably familiar with the work of Aristotle entitled On the Heavens, from almost 300 years earlier, which was geocentric in the abstract but lacked a systematic approach to observational astronomy.Hipparchus of Rhodes, a contemporary of Aristotle, described a system for recording astronomical observations.Millennia earlier, Babylonian and Sumerian astronomers of the early Babylonian period (about 2000 years BC) described the motions of the planets and arithmetical rules for planetary observation.


Why would Ptolemy not explain venus phases?

Ptolemy did not explain Venus phases in his geocentric model because he believed that Venus, like all other planets, moved around the Earth in perfect circles and did not exhibit phases like the Moon. His model could not account for the varying phases of Venus because it was based on circular motion and did not include elliptical orbits or the correct understanding of planetary motion.


Many of the advances of Renaissance cartographers were based on the work of?

ptolemy


Why was Ptolemy's Earth-centered system of epicycles taught throughout Europe for over a thousand years?

Because plain circular orbits could not explain the way the planets move. The philosophers said that the circle was the perfect curve, and Ptolemy's model used circles and epicycles. An epicycle is a small circle whose centre travels round a larger circle, and the planet then travels round the epicycle. Extra epicycles were added to account for things like the eccentric orbits (which are now recognised as elliptical), and the inclination of the orbits. However Ptolemy's model represented the movements of the planets pretty accurately which is why no-one thought to challenge it for 1400 years. Ptolemy's model was also in use in planetariums until modern times, when computer driven planetariums took over. In Ptolemy's model both Venus and Mars have very large epicycles, which we now understand are there to account for the Earth's movement round the Sun.