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Urania Propitia

January 01, 1970

Urania Propitia (lit. 'kind/beneficent Urania') is a book of astronomical tables written by Maria Cunitz and published in 1650. As Maria Cunitz was the daughter of both a physician and mathematician, it was her ability to grasp complex mathematics quickly and transcribe her findings as a polyglot that allowed her to do what[specify] few women had done before her.

The title page of the Urania propitia by Maria Cunitz (1650)

Introduction edit

Urania Propitia was a simplification of the Rudolphine Tables written by Johannes Kepler in 1627. Kepler's dedication to Emperor Ferdinand II which was originally dedicated to Rudolf II was filled with complex and tedious logarithms. Cunitz found many errors within the Rudolphine Tables.[1] The simplifications to these tables were published as the Urania Propitia. In Urania Propitia, Cunitz removed logarithms from Kepler's work, which increased the accuracy and simplified the calculations from the Rudolphine Tables.[2] Cunitz omitted some coefficients from her equations, leading to inaccuracies within her work. Astronomical tables of the time all contained computational errors, so despite these errors, Urania Propitia is seen as more accurate than Kepler’s work.[3] The tables are mostly astrological, but the instructions are completely astronomical.

Urania Propitia was published in Latin and German. The German publication is credited as a source that led to establishing German as a scientific language.[2] The publishing Urania Propitia is credited for making astrological tables more accessible outside of universities.[4]

Beyond the instructions, Maria Cunitz's book is split into three parts.

Part 1: Tables for spherical astronomy edit

The first part is the mathematical starting point. These include "sexagesimal sines, solutions of small right triangles in minutes and seconds, and tables for spherical astronomy for degrees of the ecliptic of: declination, right ascension, oblique ascension for latitudes 0 degrees to 72 degrees at 2 degree intervals..."

Part 2: Tables of average motions edit

It is the second part that the heart of Maria Cunitz's simplification is brought forward. Using the geometry and spherical astronomy from part one, Cunitz brings the rotational motions of the planets and moons into light using various mathematical formulas. One of the formulas from the Rudolphine Tables,

 

where e, M and E denote the orbital eccentricity, the mean anomaly and the eccentric anomaly. This equation is known as "Kepler's equation" which normally has no "geometrical or algebraic solution for E." However, when M is given it becomes more possible to but find "E from M to any degree of precision by iteration or interpolation." The major accomplishment Cunitz brought was the ability to compute   (the true anomaly) from M without the necessity to use "E as a coefficient of interpolation". Thus, Cunitz was able to simplify the Rudolphine Tables and determine the position of a planet in its orbit as a function of time.

Part 3: Tables for computation of eclipses edit

These tables were used for both the location of eclipses and the time of eclipses. This includes the use of the "golden astronomical number", the parallax of the moon and sun in a variety in longitude, latitude, altitude, etc..., and a catalog of other fixed stars in the universe.

Cosmology edit

Cunitz's cosmology has variations of both Tycho Brahe and Johannes Kepler. While the basic structure of her cosmology is like Tycho's with the Sun and Moon orbiting around the Earth while the rest of the planets orbit around the Sun, the physics within the cosmos involves ellipticals and "aphelions."[5]

Historical significance edit

Beyond the rewards that came from a simplification of the Rudolphine Tables, a scientific advance written by a woman in the seventeenth century was an accomplishment in itself. It was described by Noel Swerdlow as "the earliest surviving scientific work by a woman on the highest technical level of its age."[6] It was common for male scientists before Maria Cunitz to attribute their discoveries to muses. For Urania Propitia, Urania in Greek mythology was the muse of astronomy, and propitia is "favoring" or "beneficent" in Latin. This suggests that Maria Cunitz both saw Urania as her muse while also making strides for women as scientists, because she could be so easily compared to the ancient Greek astronomer.[7]

Urania propitia was privately published and as of 2016 there are nine physical copies in the world[3] along with multiple online copies.[8] Physical copies can be found in the Library of the Astronomical Observatory of Paris,[3] Library of the University of Florida,[3] in the exhibit of Galileo and Kepler at the University Libraries of Norman, Oklahoma,[9] and Bloomington Lilly Library of Indiana University.[10] Prior to June 10, 2004 the first edition of Urania propitia was located at The Library of The Earls of Macclesfield in the Shirburn Castle: Part 2 Science A-C section.[11] The book was sold at the Sotheby's auction house for $19,827 USD.[11]

References edit

  1. ^ Hrsg., Ogilvie, Marilyn Bailey (2000). The biographical dictionary of women in science pioneering lives from ancient times to the mid-20th century. Routledge. p. 309. ISBN 0-415-92040-X. OCLC 1068820840.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  2. ^ a b Reser, Anna (2021). Forces of nature : the women who changed science. Leila McNeill. London, United Kingdom. p. 38. ISBN 978-0-7112-4897-7. OCLC 1239333055.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  3. ^ a b c d Bernardi, Gabriella (2016). The unforgotten sisters : female astronomers and scientists before Caroline Herschel. Cham: Springer International Publishing. pp. 61–66. ISBN 978-3-319-26125-6. OCLC 944920062.
  4. ^ Magazine, Smithsonian; McNeill, Leila. "The 17th-Century Lady Astronomer Who Took Measure of the Stars". Smithsonian Magazine. Retrieved 2022-10-27.
  5. ^ Buchwald, Jed (2012). A Master of Science History. Pasadena, CA: California Institute of Technology Press. pp. 82–92.
  6. ^ Wooten, David (2015). The Invention of Science. Harpers Collins. p. 6. ISBN 9780061759529.
  7. ^ Schiebinger, Londa (1988). "Feminine Icons: The Face of Early Modern Science". Critical Inquiry. 14 (4): 676. doi:10.1086/448461. JSTOR 1343667. S2CID 161250392.
  8. ^ Cunitz, Maria (1610-1664) (1650). "Urania propitia sive Tabulae Astronomicae mire faciles [...]" (in Polish). {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  9. ^ "The Generous Muse of the Heavens". galileo. 2015-06-23. Retrieved 2020-04-17.
  10. ^ "IUCAT". Indiana University. Retrieved 2020-04-17.
  11. ^ a b "Cunitz (Cunitia), Maria (c. 1604-1664)". Sotheby's est. 1744. Retrieved 2020-04-17.

External links edit

  • Digital scan of Urania Propitia - Wroclaw University Library

January 01, 1970
urania, propitia, kind, beneficent, urania, book, astronomical, tables, written, maria, cunitz, published, 1650, maria, cunitz, daughter, both, physician, mathematician, ability, grasp, complex, mathematics, quickly, transcribe, findings, polyglot, that, allow. Urania Propitia lit kind beneficent Urania is a book of astronomical tables written by Maria Cunitz and published in 1650 As Maria Cunitz was the daughter of both a physician and mathematician it was her ability to grasp complex mathematics quickly and transcribe her findings as a polyglot that allowed her to do what specify few women had done before her The title page of the Urania propitia by Maria Cunitz 1650 Contents 1 Introduction 1 1 Part 1 Tables for spherical astronomy 1 2 Part 2 Tables of average motions 1 3 Part 3 Tables for computation of eclipses 2 Cosmology 3 Historical significance 4 References 5 External linksIntroduction editUrania Propitia was a simplification of the Rudolphine Tables written by Johannes Kepler in 1627 Kepler s dedication to Emperor Ferdinand II which was originally dedicated to Rudolf II was filled with complex and tedious logarithms Cunitz found many errors within the Rudolphine Tables 1 The simplifications to these tables were published as the Urania Propitia In Urania Propitia Cunitz removed logarithms from Kepler s work which increased the accuracy and simplified the calculations from the Rudolphine Tables 2 Cunitz omitted some coefficients from her equations leading to inaccuracies within her work Astronomical tables of the time all contained computational errors so despite these errors Urania Propitia is seen as more accurate than Kepler s work 3 The tables are mostly astrological but the instructions are completely astronomical Urania Propitia was published in Latin and German The German publication is credited as a source that led to establishing German as a scientific language 2 The publishing Urania Propitia is credited for making astrological tables more accessible outside of universities 4 Beyond the instructions Maria Cunitz s book is split into three parts Part 1 Tables for spherical astronomy edit The first part is the mathematical starting point These include sexagesimal sines solutions of small right triangles in minutes and seconds and tables for spherical astronomy for degrees of the ecliptic of declination right ascension oblique ascension for latitudes 0 degrees to 72 degrees at 2 degree intervals Part 2 Tables of average motions edit It is the second part that the heart of Maria Cunitz s simplification is brought forward Using the geometry and spherical astronomy from part one Cunitz brings the rotational motions of the planets and moons into light using various mathematical formulas One of the formulas from the Rudolphine Tables M E e sin E displaystyle M E e sin E nbsp where e M and E denote the orbital eccentricity the mean anomaly and the eccentric anomaly This equation is known as Kepler s equation which normally has no geometrical or algebraic solution for E However when M is given it becomes more possible to but find E from M to any degree of precision by iteration or interpolation The major accomplishment Cunitz brought was the ability to compute y displaystyle upsilon nbsp the true anomaly from M without the necessity to use E as a coefficient of interpolation Thus Cunitz was able to simplify the Rudolphine Tables and determine the position of a planet in its orbit as a function of time Part 3 Tables for computation of eclipses edit These tables were used for both the location of eclipses and the time of eclipses This includes the use of the golden astronomical number the parallax of the moon and sun in a variety in longitude latitude altitude etc and a catalog of other fixed stars in the universe Cosmology editCunitz s cosmology has variations of both Tycho Brahe and Johannes Kepler While the basic structure of her cosmology is like Tycho s with the Sun and Moon orbiting around the Earth while the rest of the planets orbit around the Sun the physics within the cosmos involves ellipticals and aphelions 5 Historical significance editBeyond the rewards that came from a simplification of the Rudolphine Tables a scientific advance written by a woman in the seventeenth century was an accomplishment in itself It was described by Noel Swerdlow as the earliest surviving scientific work by a woman on the highest technical level of its age 6 It was common for male scientists before Maria Cunitz to attribute their discoveries to muses For Urania Propitia Urania in Greek mythology was the muse of astronomy and propitia is favoring or beneficent in Latin This suggests that Maria Cunitz both saw Urania as her muse while also making strides for women as scientists because she could be so easily compared to the ancient Greek astronomer 7 Urania propitia was privately published and as of 2016 there are nine physical copies in the world 3 along with multiple online copies 8 Physical copies can be found in the Library of the Astronomical Observatory of Paris 3 Library of the University of Florida 3 in the exhibit of Galileo and Kepler at the University Libraries of Norman Oklahoma 9 and Bloomington Lilly Library of Indiana University 10 Prior to June 10 2004 the first edition of Urania propitia was located at The Library of The Earls of Macclesfield in the Shirburn Castle Part 2 Science A C section 11 The book was sold at the Sotheby s auction house for 19 827 USD 11 References edit Hrsg Ogilvie Marilyn Bailey 2000 The biographical dictionary of women in science pioneering lives from ancient times to the mid 20th century Routledge p 309 ISBN 0 415 92040 X OCLC 1068820840 a href Template Cite book html title Template Cite book cite book a CS1 maint multiple names authors list link a b Reser Anna 2021 Forces of nature the women who changed science Leila McNeill London United Kingdom p 38 ISBN 978 0 7112 4897 7 OCLC 1239333055 a href Template Cite book html title Template Cite book cite book a CS1 maint location missing publisher link a b c d Bernardi Gabriella 2016 The unforgotten sisters female astronomers and scientists before Caroline Herschel Cham Springer International Publishing pp 61 66 ISBN 978 3 319 26125 6 OCLC 944920062 Magazine Smithsonian McNeill Leila The 17th Century Lady Astronomer Who Took Measure of the Stars Smithsonian Magazine Retrieved 2022 10 27 Buchwald Jed 2012 A Master of Science History Pasadena CA California Institute of Technology Press pp 82 92 Wooten David 2015 The Invention of Science Harpers Collins p 6 ISBN 9780061759529 Schiebinger Londa 1988 Feminine Icons The Face of Early Modern Science Critical Inquiry 14 4 676 doi 10 1086 448461 JSTOR 1343667 S2CID 161250392 Cunitz Maria 1610 1664 1650 Urania propitia sive Tabulae Astronomicae mire faciles in Polish a href Template Cite journal html title Template Cite journal cite journal a Cite journal requires journal help CS1 maint numeric names authors list link The Generous Muse of the Heavens galileo 2015 06 23 Retrieved 2020 04 17 IUCAT Indiana University Retrieved 2020 04 17 a b Cunitz Cunitia Maria c 1604 1664 Sotheby s est 1744 Retrieved 2020 04 17 External links editDigital scan of Urania Propitia Wroclaw University Library Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Urania Propitia amp oldid 1217884888, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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