In 2023, on the 550th anniversary of the birth of Nicolaus Copernicus, a unique event will be held in Poland – the World Copernican Congress. Its main purpose is to present the state of research on the life and activities of the great scientist and astronomer, as well as his impact on the development of science, culture and the arts.
The Congress is co-organised by the Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń, the Jagiellonian University in Kraków, the University of Warmia and Mazury in Olsztyn, and the Institute of the History of Science of the Polish Academy of Sciences. Due to the rich Copernican traditions that are still alive and being developed in these centres, the Congress will have a rolling formula. The sessions will be held sequentially, starting in Toruń, then Kraków and Olsztyn and back again in Toruń. The official opening of the proceedings is scheduled for 19 February 2023, the anniversary of Nicolaus Copernicus’ birth and, at the same time, Nicolaus Copernicus University Day.
Various thematic sections will be held in each of the cities, specifically addressing particular groups of researchers. Economists, philosophers and researchers of the history of these disciplines have been invited to Krakow (24-26 May 2023). The Olsztyn session (21-24 June 2023) will focus on the biography of the great astronomer and the museums dedicated to him. The Toruń part of the Congress (12-15 September 2023) will gather historians, cultural studies researchers, literary scholars and art historians interested in the significance of Nicolaus Copernicus in a broadly understood culture, as well as astronomers, historians of astronomy and representatives of medical sciences. It will also mark the end of this unique event.
