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1609 AD (the first
refractor)
In 1609, using a homemade
telescope of about 20 power, Galileo discovered four moons orbiting the
planet Jupiter. He went on to resolve the Milky Way Galaxy into countless
stars, observe dark spots on the Sun, and make a map of the face of
the Moon.
Galileo is given credit for
the invention of the telescope but it should be noted that years earlier,
Leonardo DaVinci described how one of these telescopes could be built.
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