Galileo's Discoveries Changed the World

In 1564, Galileo Galilei was born and the universe shifted. The father of modern astronomy, the Italian physicist proved that the Earth revolves around the sun, challenging the accepted thinking of his day and revolutionizing science.

Though forced to halt his own studies at the University of Pisa for financial reasons, Galileo was offered a job on the faculty in 1589 teaching mathematics. In 1592 he moved to the University of Padua where he taught geometry, mechanics and astronomy until 1610. It was during this period that Galileo made some of his most starting discoveries in mathematics, kinetics and astronomy.

Writing that "the language of God is mathematics," Galileo was the first to clearly state that the laws of nature are mathematical. He developed the quantitative approach to science we use today, utilizing rigorous, mathematically-provable experiments. His improvements to the telescope allowed him to observe the moons of Jupiter and prove Copernicus' sun-centered theory of the universe. At the time, Aristotle's earth-centered views held sway and the Roman Catholic church denounced Galileo as a heretic. He spent the remainder of his life under house arrest. Undeterred, Galileo published his findings in several volumes before his death in 1642. Learn more about Galileo on Wikipedia.

To commemorate advances in astronomy, in 2002 Portugal issued the 8-value stamp set shown. To order, click the post title. At County Stamp Center you'll find stamps on every subject imaginable. Visit County Stamp Center for all your philatelic needs.