Searching for Shakespeare in the Stars

The question of the authorship of Shakespeare's plays has long been debated. The two leading contenders are W. Shakspere (1564-1616) and Edward de Vere the 13th Earl of Oxford (1550-1604). Here I note that Shakespeare's references to important events and discoveries in astronomy and geophysics in 1572 and 1600, but not to similarly important events of 1604, 1609 and 1610, especially given Shakespeare's frequent references to and knowledge of the physical sciences, might be able to shed some light on the authorship question.