Who is known for his works on the laws of planetary motion?

Johannes Kepler is renowned for his formulation of the laws of planetary motion, which revolutionized our understanding of celestial mechanics during the early 17th century. His three laws describe how planets move in elliptical orbits around the sun, with the sun at one of the foci of the ellipse. The first law states that planets move in elliptical orbits with varying speed, which is governed by their distance from the sun. The second law, also known as the law of equal areas, indicates that a line segment joining a planet to the sun sweeps out equal areas in equal times. Finally, the third law gives a relationship between the time it takes for a planet to orbit the sun and its average distance from the sun, effectively providing a mathematical framework to predict planetary positions. This work was foundational in establishing the field of astronomy as a precise science, influencing later scientists, including Isaac Newton, whose own theories built upon Kepler's laws.