Pioneering Astronomer Holds in Pee to Avoid Breach of Etiquette, Dies of Urine Poisoning
Tycho Brahe (1546 – 1601) was a Danish astronomer whose observations were the most accurate possible before telescopes were invented. He accomplished that by being one of the first astronomers to use exacting empirical facts and the scientific method to conduct a systematic study of the cosmos. His measurements, and astronomical instruments invented by him, paved the way for future advances in astronomy. Johannes Kepler, one of his assistants, would use data collected by Brahe to formulate his laws of planetary motion.
Brahe was born into a wealthy aristocratic family, and raised by a childless uncle who paid for his education and sent him to study law. However, after witnessing a solar eclipse at age 14, Brahe developed a passion for astronomy. He kept going to law lectures during the day to keep his uncle happy, but his heart, and his nights, were devoted to studying the stars.
Observations made by Brahe in 1563 revealed that all existing almanacs were inaccurate, so he devoted his life to correcting them by making accurate observations of the skies. He began traveling extensively throughout Europe, making observations and collecting instruments. During his travels, he lost half his nose in a duel, and for the rest of his life, he wore a metal prosthetic over the missing part.
The deaths of Brahe’s father and uncle left him a wealthy heir, with the financial means to pursue his passion for astronomy. In addition to accumulating accurate observations, Brahe was also a visionary. One of his major breakthroughs was the theory that the stars were not fixed in the sky, as was believed at the time, but moved, and had life cycles of birth and destruction.
By 1601, Brahe’s career was full of accomplishments, making him one of the giants upon whose shoulders future luminaries in the field of astronomy stood. In October of that year, while at a banquet in Prague, he felt an urgent need to urinate. However, he resisted getting up and doing so because he thought it would be bad manners, and a breach etiquette. By the time he got home, his bladder was damaged, and he was unable to urinate at all. He died 11 days later, most likely from uremia – urine in the blood.