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150
Begining of Astronomy
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200
Aristotle
According to Aristotle, there were three kinds of motion: rectilinear, circular and mixed. Postulated a fifth element called aether, which he believed to be the main constituent of the celestial bodies. http://space.about.com/od/astronomerbiographies/a/aristotlebio.htm -
200
Eratosthenes
Surprisingly accurate measurement of the circumference of the Earth Measurements of distance from Earth to the sun and the moon http://space.about.com/cs/astronomerbios/a/Eratosthenesbio.htm -
203
Aristarchus of Samos
His belief that the Earth revolves around the Sun and his work attempting to determine the sizes and distances of the sun and moon. Heliocentric view of the universe. -
500
Pythagoras
He recognized that the orbit of the moon was inclined to the equator of the earth And he was one of the first to realize that Venus as an evening star, was the same planet as the morning star http://9waysmysteryschool.tripod.com/sacredsoundtools/id13.html -
Feb 19, 1473
Copernicus
His idea of a sun-centered universe (heliocentric) His theory was the first to combine physics, math, and cosmology into a complete system http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art40794.asp -
Dec 14, 1546
Tycho Brahe
His work in developing astronomical instruments and in measuring and fixing the positions of stars paved the way for future discoveries Had the most accurate observations in the time before the telescope. http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/77001/Tycho-Brahe -
Feb 15, 1564
Galileo Galilei
First to observe craters on the moon, the phases of venus, and moons of Jupiter with a telescope He invented a 'calculating compass' for solving mathematics problems. http://library.thinkquest.org/23830/galilei.htm -
Dec 27, 1571
Johannes Kepler
German astronomer who discovered three major laws of planetary motion Planets have elliptical orbits, the Harmonic Law and the Area Law http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/315225/Johannes-Kepler -
Isaac Newton
Created his theory of universal gravitation Mathematics contributed to several of his findings shedding light on the behavior of celestial objects http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art48510.asp -
Annie Jump Cannon
Published catalogs of variable stars (including 300 she discovered). At Harvard she was named Curator of Astronomical Photographs -
George Ellery Hale
Solar Physics; Discovery of sun-spots and magnetic fields Developed important astronomical instruments, such as the Hale Telescope http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/252289/George-Ellery-Hale -
Henrietta Swan Leavitt
Known for her discovery of the relationship between period and luminosity in Cepheid variables Discovery of 4 novas and some 2,400 variable stars http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/334136/Henrietta-Swan-Leavitt -
Albert Einstein
Theory that states light bends slightly from the suns gravity Theory of Relativity -
Edwin Hubble
Hubble also devised a classification system for the various galaxies he observed, sorting them by content, distance, shape, and brightness Hubbles Law http://www.edwinhubble.com/hubble_bio_001.htm -
Gerard Kupier
He proposed an influential theory of the origin of our solar system, suggesting that the planets had formed by the condensation of a large cloud of gas around the sun He proposed the existence of the Kuiper Belt http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/people/profile.cfm?Code=KuiperG -
Bengt Georg Daniel Stromgren
The Strömgren Radius - examines the effects of the electromagnetic radiation of a single star The Strömgren photometric system - photoelectric photometry with a novel four-color system http://www.answers.com/topic/bengt-str-mgren -
Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar
Had discoveries that led to the currently accepted theory on the later evolutionary stages of massive stars Won nobel physics prize in 1930 for his work http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/105462/Subrahmanyan-Chandrasekhar -
Grote Reber
Pioneered Radio Astronomy Found "cosmic static" being recieved on a radio http://365daysofastronomy.org/2009/08/31/august-31st-grote-reber-the-first-radio-astronomer/ -
James Van Allen
Discovery of bands of intense radiation that encircle the Earth, trapped by its magnetic field Involved in early sattelite projects and Explorer I http://chronicle.com/article/Pioneering-Astronomer-James/37412 -
Sir Fred Hoyle
Came up with the Steady Space theory; space is expanding, and matter is constantly being generated to keep the density constant Renowned Mathemetician in britain and throughout the world http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/273606/Sir-Fred-Hoyle -
E. Margaret Burbidge
Synthesis of the elements in stars She made notable contributions to the theory of quasars http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/84933/Margaret-Burbidge -
Eugene Shoemaker
Studied Asteroid impact craters for clues as to how they got there Obsereved and discovered new asteroids (Ex: Nefertiti) http://www2.jpl.nasa.gov/sl9/news81.html -
Thomas Mutch
Head of the Viking surface photography team, for exploration on Mars; had a crater named after him Professor at Brown University from 1960 until death http://www.absoluteastronomy.com/topics/Thomas_A._Mutch -
Hipparchus
He made the first known comprehensive chart of the heavens giving the positions of at least 850 stars Discovery of the precession of the equinoxes, the eccentricity of the sun's apparent orbit, and certain inequalities of the motions of the moon http://www.infoplease.com/ce6/people/A0823774.html#ixzz1CufLRZ1T
