Tycho Brahe Tycho Brahe Tycho Brahe (; born Tyge Ottesen Brahe; 14 December 154624 October 1601) was a Danish nobleman, astronomer, and writer known for his accurate and comprehensive astronomical and planetary observations. He was born in the then Danish peninsula of Scania. Well known in his lifetime as an astronomer, astrologer and alchemist, he has been described as "the first competent mind in modern astronomy to feel ardently the passion for exact empirical facts." His observations were some five times more accurate than the best available observations at the time. An heir to several of Denmark's principal noble families, he received
Tycho Brahe know that it is 7,500 light-years from Earth). This discovery was decisive for his choice of astronomy as a profession. Tycho was strongly critical of those who dismissed the implications of the astronomical appearance, writing in the preface to "De nova stella": ""O crassa ingenia. O caecos coeli spectatores"" ("Oh thick wits. Oh blind watchers of the sky"). The publication of his discovery made him a well-known name among scientists across Europe. Tycho continued with his detailed observations, often assisted by his first assistant and student, his younger sister Sophie Brahe. In 1574, Tycho published the observations made in 1572