Who Invented the Telescope?
Or maybe you think you already know who invented it. Well, what would you say if I told you that you’re probably wrong? After all, it was Galileo Galilei who invented it, right? You might be surprised by the answer to that question. Although Galileo’s telescope was the first to be used for astronomical purposes, he didn’t invent the telescope. If not Galileo, then who invented the telescope? A man named Hans Lipperhey invented the telescope. He was born in Wesel, Germany and made his home in Middleburg, part of the Zeeland province in the Netherlands. He was married there in 1594, and became a citizen in 1602. He was a spectacle-maker by trade. The Italians developed new glass-making techniques which were introduced to the Netherlands in the 1590’s. These new techniques helped to bring about new ideas and innovations in the glass-making community and people started to experiment with different ways to combine lenses. Where is the proof? Many other people claim to have invented the tele
That question is actually open to question! Many stories are in existence about the invention of this device. The best documented case is the tale of Hans Lippershey, a Dutch spectacle maker around 1600 AD. Children drifted into his shop and were playing with the lenses and happened to notice that certain lenses used in combination made distant objects seem closer. They informed Lippershey of this, he confirmed it, and began making telescopes. Other spectacle makers also made claims at about this same time, but Lippersheys story seems the most likely and he may be the true telescope inventor. At any rate, Galileo came into contact with the telescope around 1609. He began using the instrument and this turned his notion of the universe on its head. He was the first to see mountains on the lunar surface, Jupiters moons, sunspots, and the phases of Venus. He also was the first to conclude that the moon borrows its luminescence from the sun by reflecting its light and that the Milky Way con
Who precisely invented the telescope is a somewhat fuzzy question. Since before recorded history, people have been playing with simple lenses made from rock crystal (quartz), and it seems that the basic concept of a telescope was recognized in 1230 or earlier. The late 13th century saw the invention of convex lenses for correcting long-sightedness, whereas concave lenses for near-sightedness were invented in 1451 by Nicholas of Cusa. Since a basic telescope is just a combination of a convex and concave lens in a mounting tube, the basic possibility was there. In fact, various writings from late 16th century England hint that telescopes may have been developed and used there by at least a few individuals. Yet it wasn’t until 1608 in the Netherlands that telescopes really took off. The credit for inventing the telescope traditionally goes to three people: Hans Lippershey and Zacharias Janssen, spectacle-makers working together in the town of Middleburg, and Jacob Metius of Alkmaar. Soon
Have you ever thought about what our world might be like if telescopes had never been invented? So much of what we know about the universe has come to us through the lens of a telescope. Here’s a little history lesson, in honor of this most important gadget. Contrary to popular belief, Galileo Galilei did not invent the first telescope. Historians believe the first working telescope was created by German-Dutch lensmaker Hans Lippershey in 1608. Though a handful of others are claimed to have made the discovery earlier, Lippershey was the first to apply for a patent, and was honored by the Dutch government for his discovery. This first known telescope was able to magnify images up to three times. In May of 1609, Galileo first heard of the “Dutch perspective glass,” and quickly built his own version. Galileo built several more telescopes, each stronger and better than the last, until finally, he’d made one that magnified thirty-three times. It was with this telescope that he discovered th
Hans Lippershey (ca. 1570-1619), a German-Dutch lens grinder and spectacle (glasses) maker, is generally credited with inventing the telescope. This is because in 1608 Lippsershey became the first scientist to apply for a patent for the telescope. (A patent is a grant made by a government that allows the creator of invention the sole right to make, use, and sell that invention for a set period of time.) Two other inventors, Zacharias Janssen and Jacob Metius, also developed telescopes around this time. Modern historians consider both Lippershey and Janssen to be likely candidates for the title of “inventor of the telescope,” with Lippershey possessing the strongest claim. In 1609, Italian astronomer Galileo (1564-1642) developed his own refractor telescope for astronomical studies. A refractor telescope is the simplest type of telescope; light enters through one end of a tube and passes through…
