Apollonius of Perga

Apollonius of Perga or Perge (ca. 262 BC - ca. 190 BC) was a Greek geometer and astronomer, noted for his writings on conic sections. It was Apollonius who gave the ellipse, the parabola, and the hyperbola the names by which we know them. The hypothesis of eccentric orbits, or equivalently, deferent and epicycles, to explain the apparent motion of the planets and the varying speed of the Moon, are also attributed to him.

See also

• Descartes' theorem