Copernicus's remains found

The remains of Nicolaus Copernicus, the 16th-century astronomer who transformed our understanding of the solar system, have been discovered by comparing DNA from a skeleton and hair retrieved from one of his books.

The identification is the culmination of four years of investigation which could put an end to centuries of speculation about the exact resting spot of Copernicus, whose theories identified the Sun, not the Earth, as the centre of the universe.

Jerzy Gassowski, a Polish archaeologist, said reconstruction of the skull his team found in 2005, buried in a Catholic Cathedral in Frombork, Poland – where Copernicus was a canon – bears striking resemblance to portraits of the priest. He was buried in the cathedral, but his grave was not marked.

Copernicus's final thesis on the Sun was only published in the year of his death. His ideas challenged the church, and had consequences for future thinkers, including Isaac Newton. ap