Astronomy 2009

IYA2009: "The International Year of Astronomy is a year-long celebration of astronomy. It takes place in 2009 to coincide with the 400th anniversary of the first recorded astronomical observations with a telescope by Galileo Galilei, and also the publication of Johannes Kepler's 'Astronomia nova.'

"In 1609, Galilei first turned one of his telescopes to the night sky. He made astounding discoveries that changed humankind's understanding of the Universe. This included mountains and crates on the Moon, a plethora of stars invisible to the naked eye, and moons around Jupiter. Kepler's 'Astronomia nova' describes the fundamental laws of planetary motions." [Wikipedia]
<-- (Galilei's sketches of the moon phases)

Astronomy is one of the oldest sciences. Astronomers of early civilizations performed methodical observations of the night sky, and astronomical artifacts have been found from much earlier periods. However, the invention of the telescope was required before astronomy was able to develop into a modern science. And astronomy, along with other fundamental sciences, has had a big impact on our daily lives. Steven Hawking says, "Galileo, perhaps more than any other single person, was responsible for the birth of modern science."

So whether you are an astronomical enthusiast, or someone like me who likes to gaze up at the stars and wonder about the bigger things in life.... take a moment the next time you're out in the evening and ....
look up .....
gaze at a few stars .....
contemplate the cosmos .....

StarGazing HUGS to everyone!!