Astronomical Timeline
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3,000 BC
The ancient Egyptians and Sumerians kept records of the sky. Names of stars appeared in Sumerian pieces, suggesting the fact that they had observed the sky and studied astronomy. Mesopotamians had studied astrology for deep religious reasons, believing that everything happened for a reason. Nearly all of these ancient discoveries were passed to us. The constellations of Leo, Taurus, Scorpius, Auriga, Gemini, Capricorn and Sagittarius were invented and is still in use today. These inventions were extremely useful at the time, as they had used the constellations to determine when to harvest or sowing crops. The discoveries made by the Babylonians were a scientific breakthrough and had allowed as to have a much better understanding of astronomy today.
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2173 BC
The oldest record of a reliable solar system is said to be have been made in China. They had lived on a calendar with 12 lunar months and had astronomers separate to astrologers, unlike previous cultures. The Chinese had calculated that 365.25 days made up a year, and were often serious about recording other astronomical phenomena. After constant recording of the happenings in the sky, the Chinese were soon very skilled at recording and predicting lunar eclipses. |
600 BC - 130 BC
Several ancient Greeks develop astronomy into a theoretical science about the universe's structure. These include Plato, Aristotle and Pythagoras, the first astronomer being Thales. The ancient Greeks received a large percent of the credit - but the fact is that they had just worked on the discoveries the Mesopotamians had made and deduced several theories. To the Greeks, the universe was something that they could figure out by logic.
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1508
1608
Hans Lippershey, who was born in Germany, invents a refracting telescope. Theories were made on how he got the idea of creating a telescope, one being where Hans was observing two children that were holding up two lenses and making distant objects appear larger. Credit to original inventors of the telescope now went to three people, one of them being Hans, the other Zacharias Jansen and the last person being Jacob Metius.
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1609
Galileo observes with the newly invented telescope by Hans. He discovers Jupiter's four moons and system and that several objects in the sky did not revolve around Earth. The Aristotelian principle had described the moon to be of perfect shape, roundness and a smooth layer. Galileo's discoveries had contradicted this theory and said the moon to be the complete opposite.
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1616
Galileo was ordered by the Catholic Church to stop his study of astronomy and to not teach it to others. At the time, the Catholic Church had great power, therefore Galileo did obey this order. He only followed the rule for seven years though, the reason being he was a devoted catholic and the other reason was to make his living easier.
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1623
Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems is published by Galileo, where he states the opinions of a supporter of the Copernican theory, one who is against the theory and the last person was someone who was neither. He had insisted that the book was completely neutral but the script was written in more of his opinion rather than a fair share for the Aristotelian belief.
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1668
The first reflector telescope is invented by Sir Isaac Newton, which is now known as the 'Newtonian Telescope'. Along with Nicolaus, Galileo, Kepler and Brahe, Newton made some theories of his own as well, with him supporting the heliocentric planetary system. Besides mathematics, Isaac spent some of his time by studying alchemy and Biblical chronology.
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1781
Charles Messier discovers that their are several star clusters, galaxies and nebula in the universe, thus he produces a catalog of his discovered 'nebulae'. He complied a whole list of his findings, which is now known as the Messier Catalog. Although the catalog was written by him, when it was first published, only 17 of his 45 objects recorded was actually discovered by himself. The rest were from other astronomer's discoveries. During 1780, the number of objects in the catalog increased to 80. |
1992
1969
1969 - When one of the most life changing life events occurred. The first people walked on the moon, Buzz Aldrin, Neil Armstrong and Michael Collins. Neil Armstrong, the Commander of the mission was the person to take a step on the moon and said the words, 'That's one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind.' |
Reference
Bio.com (2015) Nicolaus Copernicus Biography [Online]
Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/nicolaus-copernicus-9256984
[Accessed: 20th August 2015]
Learning Hub (2015) Nicolaus Copernicus, His Findings and Contribution. [Online]
Available from: http://blogs.yis.ac.jp/14shimomuram/nicolaus-copernicus/nicolaus-copernicus-his-findings-contribution-contribution/
[Accessed: 20th August 2015]
STAR GATE (2015) Sumerian Astronomical Knowledge [Online]
Available from: http://www.thelivingmoon.com/42stargate/03files/Sumerian_Astronomy_01.html
[Accessed: 21st August 2015]
Martyn Shuttleworth (2010) Ancient Astronomy, Science and the Ancient Greeks [Online]
Available from: https://explorable.com/greek-astronomy
[Accessed: 25th August 2015]
HISTORY.com (2015) Galileo is convicted of heresy [Online]
Available from: http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/galileo-is-convicted-of-heresy
[Accessed: 23rd August 2015]
Bio.com (2015) Galileo Biography [Online]
Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/galileo-9305220
[Accessed: 24th August 2015]
Tools of Cosmology (2015) The first Telescope [Online]
Available from: https://www.aip.org/history/cosmology/tools/tools-first-telescopes.htm
[Accessed: 25th August 2015]
Bio.com (2015) Nicolaus Copernicus Biography [Online]
Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/nicolaus-copernicus-9256984
[Accessed: 20th August 2015]
Learning Hub (2015) Nicolaus Copernicus, His Findings and Contribution. [Online]
Available from: http://blogs.yis.ac.jp/14shimomuram/nicolaus-copernicus/nicolaus-copernicus-his-findings-contribution-contribution/
[Accessed: 20th August 2015]
STAR GATE (2015) Sumerian Astronomical Knowledge [Online]
Available from: http://www.thelivingmoon.com/42stargate/03files/Sumerian_Astronomy_01.html
[Accessed: 21st August 2015]
Martyn Shuttleworth (2010) Ancient Astronomy, Science and the Ancient Greeks [Online]
Available from: https://explorable.com/greek-astronomy
[Accessed: 25th August 2015]
HISTORY.com (2015) Galileo is convicted of heresy [Online]
Available from: http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/galileo-is-convicted-of-heresy
[Accessed: 23rd August 2015]
Bio.com (2015) Galileo Biography [Online]
Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/galileo-9305220
[Accessed: 24th August 2015]
Tools of Cosmology (2015) The first Telescope [Online]
Available from: https://www.aip.org/history/cosmology/tools/tools-first-telescopes.htm
[Accessed: 25th August 2015]