The first scientist to argue that the planets orbited the sun was Nicolaus Copernicus.

While the idea of a heliocentric (sun-centered) solar system had been proposed by ancient Greek philosophers like Aristarchus of Samos, it was Copernicus who, in the 16th century, developed a comprehensive model that placed the Sun at the center and explained the observed motions of the planets. He published his groundbreaking work, "De Revolutionibus Orbium Coelestium" ("On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres"), in 1543.