THE FATHER OF OBSERVATIONAL ASTRONOMY 1

The Father of Observational Astronomy

Sterling L. Holt

Salt Lake Community College

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Galileo Galilei is considered by most to be the father of observational astronomy. The

things he discovered and the knowledge he contributed to astronomy helped pave the way for

future generations of scientists. Galileo is one of the most important scientific figures in the

renaissance not just making discoveries in astronomy, but also in physics, engineering,

philosophy, and mathematics. In a time when science was governed by the Catholic church,

Galileo was one of the first to openly publish material that was in direct contrast to what the

church upheld. In this paper I will cover some of the major discoveries Galileo made in

astronomy, and the legacy he left behind for us all.

During the 1500s there was still a lot of speculation on our place in the cosmos. Most

scientists and astronomers however stuck to one of two possible theories, geocentrism and

heliocentrism. Geocentrism, the idea that the Earth is the center of the universe, was the standard

belief of the orientation of the cosmos for over 1500 years at this point in time. However, in the

1500s a new theory came out stating that the sun was the center of the universe, called

heliocentrism. The discovery that made Galileo side with heliocentrism, was the observation of

the phases of Venus. In 1610 while observing Venus, Galileo saw the Crescent, Gibbous, and

Full phases of the planet. Because Nicolaus Copernicus predicted this in his heliocentric model,

most scientists after this discovery supported the idea of a sun centered universe. The discovery

of the phases of Venus was so huge, because for the first time an astronomer had observed proof

that the Earth orbits around the Sun.

The next great discovery by Galileo is the observation of the four largest satellites of

Jupiter. Previous to this, it was unknown whether other planets had large masses orbiting them

like our moon. On January 7th, 1610 Galileo set his homemade telescope to view Jupiter. The

discovery he was about to make would be one of the most significant astronomical discoveries in
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history. That night, he viewed through his telescope what he described as three little stars all in

a straight line near the giant gas planet. One was to the west, and two were to the east. He made a

sketch of his observation showing their general position. Fascinated by what he had observed,

Galileo spent the next few nights pointing his telescope at Jupiter to make more observations and

sketches. Eventually a few nights later on January 13th, 1610 he observed for the first time a

fourth star in line with the others, making the discovery of the four largest satellites of Jupiter

complete. Because of his discovery they are named today the Galilean Moons: Io, Europa,

Ganymede, and Callisto. This discovery was so important because for the first time we had

observed proof that other planets have moons like our own. Excited over his discoveries, Galileo

quickly published his findings in the scientific publication titled, Sidereus Nucius or Sidereal

Messenger. Although we call the moons he discovered the Galilean Moons, he originally did

not name them after himself. Instead Galileo named the moons the Medicean Stars to try and

gain favor of his Medicean family patron. Even though Galileo may have gained favor with the

Medici family, the catholic church did not like him very much after these Discoveries.

After publishing his findings of the phases of Venus and the Medicean stars, Galileo

came under harsh criticism by some scientists and the Catholic church. At that time the Catholic

church officially viewed geocentrism as the true theory for our position in the cosmos. Because

of his recent discoveries Galileo began to promote heliocentrism as the most accurate model. The

Catholic church took this so seriously that they actually declared heliocentrism to be formally

heretical. Heliocentric books were even banned in Italy, and Galileo was ordered by the church

to stop teaching or defending heliocentric ideologies.

Besides his observation of the phases of Venus and the four largest satellites of Jupiter,

Galileo also made some pretty amazing observations of our own sun. At that time due to their
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lack of knowledge, the Sun was thought to be a pure celestial body that is perfect, and will shine

forever. Some of the observations made by Galileo and other astronomers about the same time

would change that idea of our sun forever. In 1610, Galileo began to make naked eye

observations of our sun. He began observing the sun at dawn, and at dusk as to not damage his

eyes. Because of this many people believe that Galileo went blind as a result of the naked eye

observations, but that simply isnt true. Galileo actually became blind in his life due to glaucoma

and problems with his eye cataracts. Over time as Galileo began to observe the sun, he began to

see small black spots on the surface where no light was radiating. After observing the sun for a

while and comparing the sketches, he began to notice the changing position of the spots on the

sun. This led Galileo and other astronomers at the time to believe that the sun also rotates, much

like the earth. Although the rotation is much slower than us, over time he was able to sketch out

the movement of the most visible sunspot at that time around the sun.

When you talk about the field of astronomy and all the great discoveries by humans over

the last two thousand years or so, it is impossible to leave out the name of Galileo Galilei.

Although Galileo was one of the greatest figures of the Renaissance producing huge

advancements in the fields of physics, engineering, philosophy, and mathematics, he is

considered to be the Father of Observational Astronomy for his observations and discoveries

of the cosmos around us. Because of Galileos advancements in telescope technology, humans

were able to view for the first time things though to not exist at all.
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Bibliography

Helden, A. V. (2017, January 13). Galileo. Retrieved November 30, 2017, from

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Galileo-Galilei

Zax, D. (2009, August 01). Galileos Revolutionary Vision Helped Usher In Modern Astronomy.

Retrieved November 30, 2017, from https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/Galileos-

Revolutionary-Vision-Helped-Usher-In-Modern-Astronomy-34545274/
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Galileo. (2017, August 01). Retrieved November 30, 2017, from

https://www.biography.com/people/galileo-9305220

(n.d.). Retrieved November 30, 2017, from

http://sbo.colorado.edu/SBO_OLD_SITE/sbo/astroinfo/galileo/galileo.html