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138:. He falls asleep while reading about her. He recounts a strange dream he had from reading that book. The dream begins with Kepler reading a book about Duracotus, an Icelandic boy who is 14 years old. Duracotus's mother, Fiolxhilde, makes a living selling bags of herbs and cloth with strange markings on them. After he cuts into one of these bags and ruins her sale, Duracotus is sold by Fiolxhilde to a skipper. He travels with the skipper for a while until a letter is to be delivered to
230:, suggesting that an observer on the Moon would find the planet's movements as clearly visible as the Moon's activity is to the Earth's inhabitants. Nearly 20 years later, Kepler added the dream framework, and after another decade, he drafted a series of explanatory notes reflecting upon his turbulent career and the stages of his intellectual development. The book was edited by Ludwig Kepler and
268:
Levania does not seem to move but the Earth seems to orbit around it just as the Moon seems to orbit the Earth when seen from the planet (Earth). This is an example of Kepler defending
Copernicus's diurnal rotation. The inhabitants at the divisor see the planets different from the rest of the Moon. Mercury and Venus specifically seem bigger to them.
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After the daemon describes other daemons' behavior, she goes on to describe
Levania. Levania is divided into two hemispheres called Privolva and Subvolva, corresponding to the near and far sides of the Moon. Privolva never sees Volva, while Subvolva sees Volva as their moon. Volva goes throughout the
285:
A day and night is around 30 Earth days. A day on
Subvolva represents the phases of the Moon on Earth. Subvolva sees the Earth as its moon. The Earth goes through phases just as the Moon does during their night. Kepler notes that Subvolva is inhabited by serpent-like creatures. The Subvolvan terrain
276:
A day is around 14 Earth days sometimes less. Night on
Privolva is 15 or 16 Earth days. During the nights, Privolva experiences intense cold and strong winds. During the day, Privolva experiences extreme heat with no wind. During the night, water is pumped to Subvolva. During the Privolvan day, some
181:
lies the island of
Levania," which is Earth's Moon. According to the daemon, there is a pathway between the island of Levania and Earth. When the pathway is open, daemons can take humans to the island in four hours. The journey is a shock to humans, so they are sedated for the trip. Extreme cold is
267:
to describe the island of
Levania in many scientific ways. The fixed stars are in the same position as the Earth's fixed stars. The planets appear larger from Levania than from Earth due to the distance Levania is from Earth. Levania also sees planetary motions in a different way. For instance,
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The daemon continues the descriptions of
Subvolva and Privolva. Some of these details are scientific in nature, including how eclipses would look from the Moon, the sizes of the planets varying due to the Moon's distance from the Earth, and an idea about the size of the Moon. Other details are
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also a concern on the trip, but the daemons use their powers to ward it off. Another concern is the air, so humans have to have damp sponges placed in their nostrils in order to breathe. The trip is made with the daemons pushing the humans toward
Levania with great force. At the
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Upon his return to
Iceland, Duracotus finds his mother still alive. She is overjoyed to learn that he is well-studied in astronomy as she too possesses knowledge of astronomy. One day, Fiolxhilde reveals to Duracotus how she learned of the heavens. She tells him about the
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is full of fields and towns, just like Earth. At night on
Privolva all of the water is pumped to Subvolva to submerge the land so only a small portion of land remains above the waves. The Subvolvans are protected from the Sun by almost constant cloud cover and rain.
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The dream is cut short in the middle of the description of the creatures of Privolva. Kepler wakes up from the dream because of a storm outside. He then realizes that his head is covered and he is wrapped in blankets just like the characters in his story.
250:, would be arrested on charges of being a witch. Kepler fought for five years to free her. After her death, Kepler wrote extensive notes to explain his narrative. The book was published posthumously in 1634 by his son, Ludwig Kepler.
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After describing the trip to Levania, the daemon notes that daemons are overpowered by the Sun. They dwell in the shadows of the Earth, called Volva by the inhabitants of Levania. The daemons can rush to Volva during a
169:
she can summon. These daemons can move her anywhere on Earth in an instant. If the place is too far away for them to take her, they describe it in great detail. She then summons her favorite daemon to speak with them.
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from Tycho and his students. Duracotus is fascinated with astronomy and enjoys the time they spend looking at the night sky. Duracotus spends several years with Tycho before returning home to
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references Fiolxhilde and the daemon she summons from Levania with two of its main characters, a young girl named Fio and a monster named Levania, who meet and form a friendship on the moon.
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of the water is pumped back to Privolva to protect its inhabitants from the intense heat. The inhabitants are described as giants that hide under water to escape from the heat of the day.
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presents a detailed imaginative description of how the Earth might look when viewed from the Moon, and is considered the first serious scientific treatise on lunar astronomy.
246:. Duracotus spends a considerable amount of time working for Tycho Brahe. Kepler worked under Tycho Brahe in 1600 before becoming Imperial Mathematician. Kepler's mother,
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fictional in nature, such as descriptions of the creatures that inhabit Subvolva and Privolva, plant growth on each side, and the life and death cycle of Levania.
98:. It was first published in 1634 by Kepler's son, Ludwig Kepler, several years after the death of his father. In the narrative, an Icelandic boy and his
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Kepler's Dream, with the full text and notes of "Somnium, Sive Astronomia Lunaris, Joannis Kepleri," translated by Patricia Frueh Kirkwood
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between the Earth and the Moon, the daemons have to slow the humans down lest they hurtle with great force into the Moon.
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Christianson, Gale E. (1976). "Kepler's Somnium: Science Fiction and the Renaissance Scientist".
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The Somnium Astronomicum of Johann Kepler Translated, with Some Observations on Various Sources
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Duracotus Danish so they can talk. Along with learning Danish, Duracotus learns of
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389:(MA thesis). Translated by Norman Raymond Farladeau. Creighton University.
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The Great Astronomical Revolution: 1534-1687 and the Space Age Epilogue
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The story begins with Kepler reading about a skillful magician named
477:"Isaac Asimov Presents the Best Science Fiction of the 19th Century"
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Kepler's Somnium: The Dream, or Posthumous Work on Lunar Astronomy
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Kepler's Somnium: The Dream, or Posthumous Work on Lunar Astronomy
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Kepler's Somnium: The Dream, Or Posthumous Work on Lunar Astronomy
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Dutch multi-instrumentalist Jacco Gardner released a 2018 album,
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began as a student dissertation in which Kepler defended the
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559:. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press. pp. 11–29.
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novel (2012) and its same-titled cinematic adaptation
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There are many similarities to Kepler's real life in
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have referred to it as one of the earliest works of
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377:Somnium, seu opus posthumum De astronomia lunari
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660:: Latin original, English translation, and blog
653:: Science Fiction and the Renaissance Scientist
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410:. Berkeley: University of California Press.
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304:is a concept album based on the work, and
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450:Carl Sagan (September 28, 2009).
314:draws direct inspiration from it.
785:Epitome Astronomiae Copernicanae
464:from the original on 2021-12-21.
323:, a novel by the Israeli author
234:, after Kepler's death in 1630.
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385:Johannes Kepler (1962).
374:Johannes Kepler (1634).
354:, as a nod to the novel.
647:Christianson, Gale E.,
594:Science Fiction Studies
523:Moore, Patrick (1994).
347:(2016) are based on it.
936:Novels set on the Moon
855:Kepler space telescope
555:Rosen, Edward (1967).
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828:Die Harmonie der Welt
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869:Astronomers Monument
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739:Kepler's Supernova
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482:2021-11-19
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224:Copernican
177:up in the
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649:Kepler's
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462:Archived
368:Editions
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272:Privolva
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561:Bibcode
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