9781422276013

S pace exploration is a process of gathering more information about outer space. Astronomical science and modern technologies are used to learn about space. Over the years, several great astronomers and space explorers have contribut- ed towards space exploration. Famous Space Explorers

Edmond Halley Halley was an English astronomer. He studied various stars in the Southern Hemisphere.

In 1710, he found that the stars show slight movement. His greatest achieve- ment was to correctly study the pattern of occurrence of the comets. He noticed that the comets that occurred in 1456, 1531, 1607, and 1682, followed the same path around the sun. He also calculat- ed that these comets reappeared every 76 years.

Galileo Galilei Galileo Galilei was a great Italian physi- cist and astronomer. He

Nicolaus Copernicus

Nicolaus Copernicus was anastronomer fromPoland. He proposed the Copernican

made several telescopes on his own. In 1609, he created the first telescope and used it to study the moon. He observed that the surface of the moon had large craters . Using his telescope he could also observe the moons of Jupiter and rings of the planet Saturn.

theory in 1543. This theory states that the sun is at the center of the universe and the earth moves around it. This theory also states that the earth rotates on its axis every day. Such a system is now known as the heliocentric system.

SCIENCE FACTS

● ● Galileo supported the heliocentric theory proposed by Copernicus; because of this support he spent the latter years of his life under house arrest. ● ● Edmond Halley acquired the position of Astronomer Royal in the royal household of the United Kingdom in 1721.

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SPACE EXPLORATION