Nicolaus Copernicus was born in 1473 in Torun, Poland to a merchant father and wealthy mother. He was educated at universities in Poland and Italy, studying astronomy, astrology, and church law. While working for the Catholic Church, Copernicus made observations of the planets and developed his heliocentric theory that the Earth and planets revolve around the Sun. He published his theory in 1543 just before dying, though the Catholic Church still believed the Earth was the center of the universe at that time.