Great Astronomers

I've been fortunate to visit the homes, observatories, and museums or memorials of Copernicus, Brahe, Kepler, and Galileo. These astronomers advanced the entire scientific method with their careful observations at the very beginning of optical astronomy. The museums of the Great Astronomers are scattered across Europe, in little towns in Poland, Sweden, Germany, Austria, and Italy. Some are tourist attractions, and others are barely visible. I will be adding photos to this page as I visit more sites of lesser-known, but still important early astronomers.

I have always been interested in that scientific era, where simple instruments were wonderfully made and carefully used. I've had a similar interest in astrolabes, and was able to visit the grand collection at the Adler Planetarium in Chicago in 2001. More recently, I have been developing the world's most accurate astrolabe for my employer (www.Trex Enterprises.com) using the most modern techniques available. The museums of the great astronomers sometimes have their original equipment, or reproductions, and it is always amzing to me how much care was taken to design and build these instruments using the tools of the era. Even more amazing is the scientific process and advancements made by their detailed thought and analysis. While their homes or monuments cannot give much insight to how those ideas were developed, I have still been filled with awe when I walk the same steps that these early astronomers trod.