The Ophiucus Supernova: Post-Aristotelian Stargazing in the European Context (1604-1654)

The Ophiucus Supernova: Post-Aristotelian Stargazing in the European Context (1604-1654)"" is a research project proposed for a Marie Curie Fellowship by Dr. Matteo Cosci, post-doctoral researcher at the University Ca' Foscari Venice.

This research will examine how the unexpected explosion of a supernova in European skies in 1604 (SN 1604 or ""Kepler's supernova"" as it was called) fundamentally affected the development of Renaissance scientific thought from a historical, philosophical and cultural point of view.

In fact, for the five decades after its outburst the interpretation of the new star or stella nova was one of the main speculative battlefields where opposing conceptions of the universe collided.

The study will be grounded in an extensive set of primary sources and documents assembled by Dr.Cosci and analysed in their entirety for the first time.

The first outgoing phase of research will be conducted at the Department of History of Science at University of Oklahoma under the supervision of Prof. Peter Barker, also consulting Dr. Patrick Boner of the Catholic University, Washington D.C .

The return phase will take place at the Department of Philosophy and Cultural Heritage at Ca' Foscari under the supervision of Prof. Marco Sgarbi.

Moreover, the research will provide data to, and will be assisted by, the Terra-Astronomy research group, based at the University of Jena, Germany, under the supervision of Prof. Ralph Neuhäuser, for assessing the historical supernova's typology and rare features.

Results will be presented mainly through a dedicated internet site, a series of peer-reviewed articles in academic journals, and finally a book.

The project provides the opportunity to give the proponent additional training for his academic career, to establish collaborations between many research groups working on similar themes in North America and in Europe, and finally to recover and reconsider a neglected chapter of Europen cultural history.