Brief History of Astronomy

Astronomy of Renaissance

1543: Copernicus publishes De Revolutionibus Orbium Coelestium in which he provides mathematical evidence for the heliocentric theory of the Universe.
1572: Tycho Brahe discoveres a supernova in the constellation Cassiopeia (now this supernova remenents are known as Cassiopeiae A).
1576: Tycho Brahe founds the observatory at Uraniborg.
1582 (October 15): The Pope Gregory XIII introduces the Gregorian calendar.
1595: David Fabricius discovers the long-period variable star in the constellation Cetus, named Mira Ceti.
1600 (February 17): Giordano Bruno after some eight years of imprisonment is charged with blasphemy, immoral conduct, and heresy for challenging the official church doctrine on the origin and structure of the universe and is burned at the stake in Campo dei Fiori.
1603: Johann Bayer publishes his star catalogue, Uranometria. He introduces the so-called Bayer designation, system of assigning Greek letters to stars which is widely used nowadays.
1604: Kepler discovers supernova in Ophiuchus.
1608: Lippershey, a Dutch spectacles maker invents the first telescope.
1609: Galileo first uses the telescope for astronomical purposes (discovers four Jovian moons, the Moon craters, and the Milky Way).; The first two of Kepler's Laws of Planetary Motions are announced.
1611: Galileo, Scheiner, and Fabricius observe sunspots.
1612: Peiresc discovers the Orion Nebula (M42).
1619: Kepler publishes the Third Law of Planetary Motion in his Harmonice Mundi (Harmony of the World).
1631: Kepler predicts the Transit of Mercury which is observed by Gassendi.
1632: Galileo publishes his Dialogue on the Two Chief World Systems - the discussion of Ptolemaic and Copernican hypotheses in relation to the physics of tides ( the original version including title - originally Dialogue on the Tides -was licensed and altered by the Roman Catholic censors in Rome.
1633: Galileo is forced by the Inquistion to recant his theories.
1639: Jeremiah Horrocks observes the transit of Venus
1647: Hevelius - the astronomer from Gdansk - publishes the map of the Moon.
1656: Huyghens discovers the nature of Saturns rings and Titan - the largest satellite of Saturn.; Foundation of the Copenhagen Observatory.
1659: Huyghen observes markings on the planet Mars.
1666: Cassini observes the polar caps on Mars.
1668: Newton builds the first reflecting telescope (Newtonian).
1669: Montanari discovers the variable nature of Algol.
1671: Foundation of Paris Observatory.
1675: Foundation of Grenwich Observatory.; Romer measures the velocity of light.; Cassini discovers the main division in Saturn's rings.
1683: Cassini observes the zodiacal light.