Question

What people initially thought about the Earth?
a. Earth was in the centre of the universe
b. Sun was revolving round the Earth
c. Earth was stationary
d. None of these

Answer 1

Hint: The Europeans believed that they are at the best place in the Universe and that the Sun and other stars, including the moon, are quite in motion without any impact on the Earth.

Complete answer:
Since the options in the question mention various medieval theories about the geographical pattern of the universe, these need to be looked at one by one for analysis.
a. Earth was in the centre of the universe: Since the ancient and the medieval Europeans did not feel their movement or the movement of the Earth, they believed that the Earth is not in motion. They were able to see all the cosmic objects nearby via telescope and other devices as well. So, they thought that the Earth is at the centre of the Universe. So, it is the correct option.
b. Sun was revolving round the Earth: Since the ancient Europeans saw the movement of the sun from day to night and then again during the day, they believed that it was the revolution of the Sun that was taking place and not the revolution of the Earth. Although this belief was false, it is about the sun and not the Earth which makes it out of bounds. So, it is an incorrect option.
c. Earth was stationary: The ancient philosophers had already proven that the rotation of Earth was an essential phenomenon and due to this reason, the belief that the Earth was stationary at its own axis was washed out. So, it is an incorrect option.
d. None of these: Since we already have a correct option from amongst the ones above, this option is out of bounds for us. So, it is an incorrect option.
Hence, the correct option is, ‘b. Sun was revolving round the Earth’.

Note: Copernican heliocentrism was an astronomical model which was developed by the European philosopher Nicolaus Copernicus. It was published in the year 1543 which busted many myths about astronomy.