Kepler and Newton

Abstract Kepler is known today for his three planetary laws and his insistence on constructing astronomy based on physics rather than on geometry alone. This makes Kepler’s work seem like a natural predecessor to Newton’s achievement in the Principia. The Keplerian tradition in England that Newton inherited, however, typically only included parts of Kepler’s physical astronomy. This was an understandable response to the conceptual and computational problems that Kepler’s theory introduced. This article examines those problems, along with the transmission of Kepler’s theory to Newton. Special emphasis will be paid to Thomas Streete’s Astronomia Carolina, a Keplerian astronomy with tables, along with the notes Newton made on Streete’s work in the Questiones notebook between 1664 and 1665.