The Millennium:
A Space and Astronomy Timeline
Century:
10th
| 11th
| 12th
| 13th
| 14th
| 15th
| 16th
| 17th
| 18th
| 19th
| Early 20th
| Late 20th
| 21st
The Second Millennium (1001 - 2000AD)
16th Century (1501 - 1600)
1500s: Sixteenth century Europe gives full vent to the Renaissance spirit of inquiry that emerged in the fifteenth century. Europe began to lead the world in technology. Its firearms gave Spanish and Portuguese explorers an advantage over people they encountered in Asia, America and Africa.
1522: Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan's expedition completes a circumnavigation of the globe.
1543: Polish astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus publishes On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres theorizing that the Earth and other planets revolve around the Sun. It brings a literal change in how the world is viewed and a confrontation with church doctrine. On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres lays the foundation for modern astronomy by suggesting a heliocentric system, rather than accepting Ptolemy's long-standing view that Earth is the center of the Universe.
1568: Flemish cartographer Gerardus Mercator develops cylindrical map projections.
1572: Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe observes a supernova, demonstrating that celestial bodies are not unchanging.
1577: Brahe's detailed observation of a comet casts further doubt on Aristotle's doctrine of the immutability of the heavens.
1582: Pope Gregory XIII corrects the Julian calendar with a New Style Gregorian Calendar. April 1 no longer is New Year's Day and becomes known as "fool's holiday" for those who did not accept the change. This Gregorian solar calendar will go into use throughout most of the world.
1596: Johannes Kepler publishes Mysterium Cosmographicum (Mysteries of the Cosmos).
1598: Brahe describes his astronomical experiments.
1600: Dutch lens grinders invent the first refracting telescope, symbolizing the rise of Western scientific endeavor. The telescope helps England expand overseas. The Dutch use the telescope to sail to southeast Asia and dominate the spice routes. The telescope, which lets gentlemen scientists observe new facts, highlights the coming shift of the center of world power from China to Europe.
Timeline Century:
10th
| 11th
| 12th
| 13th
| 14th
| 15th
| 16th
| 17th
| 18th
| 19th
| Early 20th
| Late 20th
| 21st
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