Who Was Galileo Galilei?

When it comes to scientists who revolutionized the way we think of the universe, few
names stand out like Galileo Galilei. A noted inventor, physicist, engineer and
astronomer, Galileo was one of the greatest contributors to the Scientific Revolution.
He build telescopes, designed a compass for surveying and military use, created a
revolutionary pumping system, and developed physical laws that were the
precursors of Newton’s law of Universal Gravitation and Einstein’s Theory of
Relativity.

But it was within the field of astronomy that Galileo made his most enduring impact.
Using telescopes of his own design, he discovered Sunspots, the largest moons of
Jupiter, surveyed The Moon, and demonstrated the validity of Copernicus’
heliocentric model of the universe. In so doing, he helped to revolutionize our
understanding of the cosmos, our place in it, and helped to usher in an age where
scientific reasoning trumped religious dogma.

Early Life:
Galileo was born in Pisa, Italy, in 1564, into a noble but poor family. He was the first
of six children of Vincenzo Galilei and Giulia Ammannati, who’s father also had three
children out of wedlock. Galileo was named after an ancestor, Galileo Bonaiuti (1370
– 1450), a noted physician, university teacher and politician who lived in Florence.

His father, a famous lutenist, composer and music theorist, had a great impact on
Galileo; transmitting not only his talent for music, but skepticism of authority, the
value of experimentation, and the value of measures of time and rhythm to achieve
success.
The Camaldolese Monastery at Vallombrosa, 35 km southeast of Florence, where Galileo
was educated until 1581. Credit: nobility.org
In 1572, when Galileo Galilei was eight, his family moved to Florence, leaving
Galileo with his uncle Muzio Tedaldi (related to his mother through marriage) for two
years.When he reached the age of ten, Galileo left Pisa to join his family in Florence
and was tutored by Jacopo Borghini -a mathematician and professor from the
university of Pisa.

Once he was old enough to be educated in a monastery, his parents sent him to the
Camaldolese Monastery at Vallombrosa, located 35 km southeast of Florence. The
Order was independent from the Benedictines, and combined the solitary life of the
hermit with the strict life of a monk. Galileo apparently found this life attractive and
intending to join the Order, but his father insisted that he study at the University of
Pisa to become a doctor.

Education:
While at Pisa, Galileo began studying medicine, but his interest in the sciences
quickly became evident. In 1581, he noticed a swinging chandelier, and became
fascinated by the timing of its movements. To him, it became clear that the amount
of time, regardless of how far it was swinging, was comparable to the beating of his
heart.

When he returned home, he set up two pendulums of equal length, swinging one
with a large sweep and the other with a small sweep, and found that they kept time
together. These observations became the basis of his later work with pendulums to
keep time – work which would also be picked up almost a century later
when Christiaan Huygens designed the first officially-recognized pendulum clock.

Galileo Demonstrating the New Astronomical Theories at the University of Padua, by Félix
Parra (1873). Credit: munal.gob.mx
Shortly thereafter, Galileo accidentally attended a lecture on geometry, and talked
his reluctant father into letting his study mathematics and natural philosophy instead
of medicine. From that point onward, he began a steady processes of inventing,
largely for the sake of appeasing his father’s desire for him to make money to pay off
his siblings expenses (particularly those of his younger brother, Michelagnolo).

In 1589, Galileo was appointed to the chair of mathematics at the University of Pisa.
In 1591, his father died, and he was entrusted with the care of his younger siblings.
Being Professor of Mathematics at Pisa was not well paid, so Galileo lobbied for a
more lucrative post. In 1592, this led to his appointment to the position of Professor
of Mathematics at the University of Padua, where he taught Euclid’s geometry,
mechanics, and astronomy until 1610.

During this period, Galileo made significant discoveries in both pure fundamental
science as well as practical applied science. His multiple interests included the study
of astrology, which at the time was a discipline tied to the studies of mathematics
and astronomy. It was also while teaching the standard (geocentric) model of the
universe that his interest in astronomy and the Copernican theory began to take off.
Telescopes:
In 1609, Galileo received a letter telling him about a spyglass that a Dutchman had
shown in Venice. Using his own technical skills as a mathematician and as a
craftsman, Galileo began to make a series of telescopes whose optical performance
was much better than that of the Dutch instrument.

Galileo Galilei’s telescope with his handwritten note specifying the magnifying power of the
lens, at an exhibition at The Franklin Institute in Philadelphia. Credit: AP Photo/Matt
Rourke
As he would later write in his 1610 tract Sidereus Nuncius (“The Starry Messenger”):

“About ten months ago a report reached my ears that a certain Fleming had
constructed a spyglass by means of which visible objects, though very distant from
the eye of the observer, were distinctly seen as if nearby. Of this truly remarkable
effect several experiences were related, to which some persons believed while other
denied them. A few days later the report was confirmed by a letter I received from a
Frenchman in Paris, Jacques Badovere, which caused me to apply myself
wholeheartedly to investigate means by which I might arrive at the invention of a
similar instrument. This I did soon afterwards, my basis being the doctrine of
refraction.”

His first telescope – which he constructed between June and July of 1609 – was
made from available lenses and had a three-powered spyglass. To improve upon
this, Galileo learned how to grind and polish his own lenses. By August, he had
created an eight-powered telescope, which he presented to the Venetian Senate.
By the following October or November, he managed to improve upon this with the
creation a twenty-powered telescope. Galileo saw a great deal of commercial and
military applications of his instrument(which he called a perspicillum) for ships at sea.
However, in 1610, he began turning his telescope to the heavens and made his most
profound discoveries.

Galileo Galilei showing the Doge of Venice how to use the telescope, by Giuseppe Bertini
(1858). Credit: gabrielevanin.it
Achievements in Astronomy:
Using his telescope, Galileo began his career in astronomy by gazing at the Moon,
where he discerned patterns of uneven and waning light. While not the first
astronomer to do this, Galileo artistic’s training and knowledge of chiaroscuro –
the use of strong contrasts between light and dark – allowed him to correctly deduce
that these light patterns were the result of changes in elevation. Hence, Galileo was
the first astronomer to discover lunar mountains and craters.

In The Starry Messenger, he also made topographical charts, estimating the heights
of these mountains. In so doing, he challenged centuries of Aristotelian dogma that
claimed that Moon, like the other planets, was a perfect, translucent sphere. By
identifying that it had imperfections, in the forms of surface features, he began
advancing the notion that the planets were similar to Earth.

Galileo also recorded his observations about the Milky Way in the Starry Messenger,
which was previously believed to be nebulous. Instead, Galileo found that it was a
multitude of stars packed so densely together that it appeared from a distance to
look like clouds. He also reported that whereas the telescope resolved the planets
into discs, the stars appeared as mere blazes of light, essentially unaltered in
appearance by the telescope – thus suggesting that they were much farther away
than previously thought.

Using his telescopes, Galileo also became one the first European astronomer to
observe and study sunspots. Though there are records of previous instances of
naked eye observations – such as in China (ca. 28 BCE), Anaxagoras in 467 BCE,
and by Kepler in 1607 – they were not identifies as being imperfections on the
surface of the Sun. In many cases, such as Kepler’s, it was thought that the spots
were transits of Mercury.

In addition, there is also controversy over who was the first to observe sunspots
during the 17th century using a telescope. Whereas Galileo is believed to have
observed them in 1610, he did not publish about them and only began speaking to
astronomers in Rome about them by the following year. In that time, German
astronomer Christoph Scheiner had been reportedly observing them using a
helioscope of his own design.

At around the same time, the Frisian astronomers Johannes and David Fabricius
published a description of sunspots in June 1611. Johannes book, De Maculis in
Sole Observatis (“On the Spots Observed in the Sun”) was published in autumn of
1611, thus securing credit for him and his father.

In any case, it was Galileo who properly identified sunspots as imperfections on the
surface of the Sun, rather than being satellites of the Sun – an explanation that
Scheiner, a Jesuit missionary, advanced in order to preserve his beliefs in the
perfection of the Sun.

Using a technique of projecting the Sun’s image through the telescope onto a piece
of paper, Galileo deduced that sunspots were, in fact, on the surface of the Sun or in
its atmosphere. This presented another challenge to the Aristotelian and Ptolemaic
view of the heavens, since it demonstrated that the Sun itself had imperfections.

On January 7th, 1610, Galileo pointed his telescope towards Jupiter and observed
what he described in Nuncius as “three fixed stars, totally invisible by their
smallness” that were all close to Jupiter and in line with its equator. Observations on
subsequent nights showed that the positions of these “stars” had changed relative to
Jupiter, and in a way that was not consistent with them being part of the background
stars.
The Galilean moons, shown to scale – Io (top right), Europa (upper left), Ganymede (right)
and Callisto (bottom left). Credit: NASA/JPL
By January 10th, he noted that one had disappeared, which he attributed to it being
hidden behind Jupiter. From this, he concluded that the stars were in fact orbiting
Jupiter, and they were satellites of it. By January 13th, he discovered a fourth, and
named them the Medicean stars, in honor of his future patron, Cosimo II de’ Medici,
Grand Duke of Tuscany, and his three brothers.

Later astronomers, however, renamed them the Galilean Moons in honour of their
discoverer. By the 20th century, these satellites would come to be known by their
current names – Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto – which had been suggested
by 17th century German astronomer Simon Marius, apparently at the behest
of Johannes Kepler.

Galileo’s observations of these satellites proved to be another major controversy. For

the first time, a planet other than Earth was shown to have satellites orbiting it, which
constituted yet another nail in the coffin of the geocentric model of the universe. His
observations were independently confirmed afterwards, and Galileo continued to
observe the satellites them and even obtained remarkably accurate estimates for
their periods by 1611.

Heliocentrism:
Galileo’s greatest contribution to astronomy came in the form of his advancement of
the Copernican model of the universe (i.e. heliocentrism). This began in 1610 with
his publication of Sidereus Nuncius, which brought the issue of celestial
imperfections before a wider audience. His work on sunspots and his observation of
the Galilean Moons furthered this, revealing yet more inconsistencies in the currently
accepted view of the heavens.

Galileo’s Sidereus Nuncius (“Starry Messenger”), published in 1610, laid out his
observations of the moon’s surface, which included mountains and impact craters.
Credit: brunelleschi.imss.fi.it
Other astronomical observations also led Galileo to champion the Copernican model
over the traditional Aristotelian-Ptolemaic (aka. geocentric) view. From September
1610 onward, Galileo began observing Venus, noting that it exhibited a full set of
phases similar to that of the Moon. The only explanation for this was that Venus was
periodically between the Sun and Earth; while at other times, it was on the opposite
side of the Sun.

According to the geocentric model of the universe, this should have been impossible,
as Venus’ orbit placed it closer to Earth than the Sun – where it could only exhibit
crescent and new phases. However, Galileo’s observations of it going through
crescent, gibbous, full and new phases was consistent with the Copernican model,
which established that Venus orbited the Sun within the Earth’s orbit.

These and other observations made the Ptolemaic model of the universe untenable.
Thus, by the early 17th century, the great majority of astronomers began to convert
to one of the various geo-heliocentric planetary models – such as the Tychonic,
Capellan and Extended Capellan models. These all had the virtue of explaining
problems in the geocentric model without engaging in the “heretical” notion that
Earth revolved around the Sun.

In 1632, Galileo addressed the “Great Debate” in his treatise Dialogo sopra i due
massimi sistemi del mondo (Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems), in
which he advocated the heliocentric model over the geocentric. Using his own
telescopic observations, modern physics and rigorous logic, Galileo’s arguments
effectively undermined the basis of Aristotle and Ptolemy’s system for a growing and
receptive audience.

Frontispiece and title page of the Dialogue, 1632. Credit: moro.imss.fi.it

In the meantime, Johannes Kepler correctly identified the sources of tides on Earth –
something which Galileo had become interesting in himself. But whereas Galileo
attributed the ebb and flow of tides to the rotation of the Earth, Kepler ascribed this
behavior to the influence of the Moon.

Combined with his accurate tables on the elliptical orbits of the planets (something
Galileo rejected), the Copernican model was effectively proven. From the middle of
the seventeenth century onward, there were few astronomers who were not
Copernicans.

The Inquisition and House Arrest:

As a devout Catholic, Galileo often defended the heliocentric model of the universe
using Scripture. In 1616, he wrote a letter to the Grand Duchess Christina, in which
he argued for a non-literal interpretation of the Bible and espoused his belief in the
heliocentric universe as a physical reality:

“I hold that the Sun is located at the center of the revolutions of the heavenly orbs
and does not change place, and that the Earth rotates on itself and moves around it.
Moreover … I confirm this view not only by refuting Ptolemy’s and Aristotle’s
arguments, but also by producing many for the other side, especially some
pertaining to physical effects whose causes perhaps cannot be determined in any
other way, and other astronomical discoveries; these discoveries clearly confute the
Ptolemaic system, and they agree admirably with this other position and confirm it.“

More importantly, he argued that the Bible is written in the language of the common
person who is not an expert in astronomy. Scripture, he argued, teaches us how to
go to heaven, not how the heavens go.

Galileo facing the Roman Inquisition. by Cristiano Banti’s (1857). Credit: law.umkc.edu
Initially, the Copernican model of the universe was not seen as an issue by the
Roman Catholic Church or it’s most important interpreter of Scripture at the time –
Cardinal Robert Bellarmine. However, in the wake of the Counter-Reformation,
which began in 1545 in response to the Reformation, a more stringent attitude began
to emerge towards anything seen as a challenge to papal authority.

Eventually, matters came to a head in 1615 when Pope Paul V (1552 – 1621)
ordered that the Sacred Congregation of the Index (an Inquisition body charged with
banning writings deemed “heretical”) make a ruling on Copernicanism. They
condemned the teachings of Copernicus, and Galileo (who had not been personally
involved in the trial) was forbidden to hold Copernican views.

However, things changed with the election of Cardinal Maffeo Barberini (Pope Urban
VIII) in 1623. As a friend and admirer of Galileo’s, Barberini opposed the
condemnation of Galileo, and gave formal authorization and papal permission for the
publication of Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems.

However, Barberini stipulated that Galileo provide arguments for and against
heliocentrism in the book, that he be careful not to advocate heliocentrism, and that
his own views on the matter be included in Galileo’s book. Unfortunately, Galileo’s
book proved to be a solid endorsement of heliocentrism and offended the Pope
personally.

Portrait of Galileo gazing at the words “E pur si muove” scratched on the wall of his prison
cell, attributed to Bartolomé Esteban Murillo (1618-1682). Credit: Wikipedia Commons
In it, the character of Simplicio, the defender of the Aristotelian geocentric view, is
portrayed as an error-prone simpleton. To make matter worse, Galileo had the
character Simplicio enunciate the views of Barberini at the close of the book, making
it appear as though Pope Urban VIII himself was a simpleton and hence the subject
of ridicule.
As a result, Galileo was brought before the Inquisition in February of 1633 and
ordered to renounce his views. Whereas Galileo steadfastly defended his position
and insisted on his innocence, he was eventually threatened with torture and
declared guilty. The sentence of the Inquisition, delivered on June 22nd, contained
three parts – that Galileo renounce Copernicanism, that he be placed under house
arrest, and that the Dialogue be banned.

According to popular legend, after recanting his theory publicly that the Earth moved
around the Sun, Galileo allegedly muttered the rebellious phrase: “E pur si muove”
(“And yet it moves” in Latin). After a period of living with his friend, the Archbishop of
Siena, Galileo returned to his villa at Arcetri (near Florence in 1634), where he spent
the remainder of his life under house arrest.

Other Accomplishments:
In addition to his revolutionary work in astronomy and optics, Galileo is also credited
with the invention of many scientific instruments and theories. Much of the devices
he created were for the specific purpose of earning money to pay for his sibling’s
expenses. However, they would also prove to have a profound impact in the fields of
mechanics, engineering, navigation, surveying, and warfare.
 Galileo’s La Billancetta, in
which he describes a method for hydrostatic balance. Credit: Museo Galileo
In 1586, at the age of 22, Galileo made his first groundbreaking invention. Inspired
by the story of Archimedes and his “Eureka” moment, Galileo began looking into how
jewelers weighed precious metals in air and then by displacement to determine their
specific gravity. Working from this, he eventually theorized of a better method, which
he described in a treatise entitled La Bilancetta (“The Little Balance”).

In this tract, he described an accurate balance for weighing things in air and water, in
which the part of the arm on which the counter weight was hung was wrapped with
metal wire. The amount by which the counterweight had to be moved when weighing
in water could then be determined very accurately by counting the number of turns of
the wire. In so doing, the proportion of metals like gold to silver in the object could be
read off directly.
In 1592, when Galileo was a professor of mathematics at the University of Padua, he
made frequent trips to the Arsenal – the inner harbor where Venetian ships were
outfitted. The Arsenal had been a place of practical invention and innovation for
centuries, and Galileo used the opportunity to study mechanical devices in detail.
In 1593, he was consulted on the placement of oars in galleys and submitted a
report in which he treated the oar as a lever and correctly made the water the
fulcrum. A year later the Venetian Senate awarded him a patent for a device for
raising water that relied on a single horse for the operation. This became the basis of
modern pumps.

A
replica of the earliest surviving telescope attributed to Galileo Galilei, on display at the
Griffith Observatory. Credit: Wikipedia Commons/Mike Dunn
To some, Galileo’s Pump was a merely an improvement on the Archimedes Screw,
which was first developed in the third century BCE and patented in the Venetian
Republic in 1567. However, there is no apparent evidence connecting Galileo’s
invention to Archimedes’ earlier and less sophisticated design.

In ca. 1593, Galileo constructed his own version of a thermoscope, a forerunner of

the thermometer, that relied on the expansion and contraction of air in a bulb to
move water in an attached tube. Over time, he and his colleagues worked to develop
a numerical scale that would measure the heat based on the expansion of the water
inside the tube.

The cannon, which was first introduced to Europe in 1325, had become a mainstay
of war by Galileo’s time. Having become more sophisticated and mobile, gunners
needed instruments to help them coordinate and calculate their fire. As such,
between 1595 and 1598, Galileo devised an improved geometric and military
compass for use by gunners and surveyors.
During the 16th century, Aristotelian physics was still the predominant way of
explaining the behavior of bodies near the Earth. For example, it was believed that
heavy bodies sought their natural place of rest – i.e at the center of things. As a
result, no means existed to explain the behavior of pendulums, where a heavy body
suspended from a rope would swing back and forth and not seek rest in the middle.

The Sector, a military/geometric compass designed by Galileo Galilei.

Credit: chsi.harvard.edu
Already, Galileo had conducted experiments that demonstrated that heavier bodies
did not fall faster than lighter ones – another belief consistent with Aristotelian theory.
In addition, he also demonstrated that objects thrown into the air travel in parabolic
arcs. Based on this and his fascination with the back and forth motion of a
suspended weight, he began to research pendulums in 1588.

In 1602, he explained his observations in a letter to a friend, in which he described

the principle of isochronism. According to Galileo, this principle asserted that the
time it takes for the pendulum to swing is not linked to the arc of the pendulum, but
rather the pendulum’s length. Comparing two pendulum’s of similar length, Galileo
demonstrated that they would swing at the same speed, despite being pulled at
different lengths.

According to Vincenzo Vivian, one of Galileo’s contemporaries, it was in 1641 while

under house arrest that Galileo created a design for a pendulum clock.
Unfortunately, being blind at the time, he was unable to complete it before his death
in 1642. As a result, Christiaan Huygens’ publication of Horologrium Oscillatorium in
1657 is recognized as the first recorded proposal for a pendulum clock.

Death and Legacy:

Galileo died on January 8th, 1642, at the age of 77, due to fever and heart
palpitations that had taken a toll on his health. The Grand Duke of Tuscany,
Ferdinando II, wished to bury him in the main body of the Basilica of Santa Croce,
next to the tombs of his father and other ancestors, and to erect a marble
mausoleum in his honor.