The journey of astronomical telescopes began in the early 17th century when Galileo Galilei crafted his first refracting telescope in 1609. Although not the inventor of the telescope, Galileo was the ...

Well, any of us who has ever looked through a telescope could say the same, for the two principal types in use today were developed by giants: the refractor by Galileo and the reflector by Newton.

T he telescope began as a relatively simple device, born out of optical experimentation. It combined a series of lenses and mirrors to collect and magnify light, allowing the user to see far away ...