Night: How Copernicus Made the Sun Stand Still and the Earth Move

Patterns in the Night Sky On a March night in 1497, a young Nicholas Copernicus watched the moon glide across the sky and hide a distant star. When the star reappeared too soon, he knew something was wrong with the accepted science of his time. That single observation launched a lifetime of questions—and changed how we understand our place in the universe.NIGHT tells the true story of how Copernicus challenged centuries of scientific thinking. Using only his eyes and simple instruments—no telescopes existed yet—he carefully measured the movements of planets across the dark skies above the Baltic Sea. Night after night, year after year, until the math finally worked: the sun stood still at the center, and Earth moved around it.Young readers will discover how one curious mind and careful observation can overturn everything we think we know. With rich back matter including information about Copernicus's life, his astronomical tools, the importance of dark skies, and why scientific revolut