Which fundamental laws did Edmond Halley employ to demonstrate comet periodicity?
Answer
Laws of gravity and motion developed by Isaac Newton
Edmond Halley's breakthrough in the late 17th and early 18th centuries fundamentally changed comet science by integrating mathematics with observation. He did not simply rely on visual sightings. Instead, he utilized the recently formulated and proven laws concerning gravity and motion, as established by Isaac Newton. By applying this rigorous mathematical modeling to historical observations of comets seen in 1531, 1607, and 1682, Halley was able to mathematically prove that these were instances of the same celestial body following a predictable, elliptical orbit around the Sun, shifting discovery from sighting to prediction.
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