This Week in History

January 7, 1610, using a hand-built telescope, Galileo Galilei discovered the planet Jupiter and four moons orbiting the planet. His first observation led him to believe he was observing a group of stars.

After a few weeks, Galileo determined that he was seeing not stars, rather objects in orbit around Jupiter. His discovery provided evidence for the Copernican understanding of the universe. That is, everything in existence did not move around the Earth.

Source(s): The Star archives

Compiled by Bob Valen