Summary:
it is how utopia affected astronomy over time
Over the history of mankind, we have looked to the stars with curiosity and wonder of what is up in the universe. Man wonders if there is utopia up in space or if there is a place were they could create utopia. In the 1500s, 1600s, and 1900's, many important people discovered astrological phenomenas which have shaped mans ideas of the universe which has in turn shaped mans outlook on a perfect place. Over time, astronomy has changed because the technology has gotten more advanced, and more discoveries have been made to help man's quest for utopia. These changes in astronomy have influenced society because it has interested more people to try and discover more about astronomy.
The first major time period is the 1500's, where the Gregorian calendar was invented and Nicholas Copernicus wrote his theory of the universe. In 1543, Copernicus's theory of a heliocentric universe explains that the earth rotates around the sun and every celestial body rotates in a larger and larger unit. Pope Gregory XII introduced the Calendar to get people more organized and to be able to set dates up and to keep track of time. That relates to the Renaissance because people wanted to become more organized, and the Gregorian calendar made organization easier. Society in the 1500's was all about new ideas related to the universe. It was the age of the Renaissance, and it was all about being a well rounded person. Society influenced utopia because people wanted to explore new things and expand their knowledge.
The second time period that had the most significance was the 1600's. In the 1600's the telescope what made by Hans Lippershey, and so new astronomical discoveries were made. Galileo was the first to make astronomical use of the telescope . His discoveries of the four largest moons of Jupiter and the phases of Venus were persuasive evidence for the Copernican cosmology (Columbia Encyclopedia, internet). Another event that happened in the 1600's was in 1687, and Isaac Newton publishes his theory of universal gravitation. He said that if the force of gravity reaches to the top of the highest tree, might it not reach even further; in particular, might it not reach all the way to the orbit of the Moon. Then, the orbit of the Moon about the Earth could be a consequence of the gravitational force, because the acceleration due to gravity could change the velocity of the Moon in just such a way that it followed an orbit around the earth (Sir Isaac Newton, internet). This is the start of Modern Astronomy. The events taking place in society around that time are the 13 colonies have just been established. Conflict has arisen with England and the colonists. Other countries like Spain and France were on a quest to set up colonies in the new world. People thought that they could set up utopia or find it in the new world. The ideal was to make new discoveries ranging from new lands on earth to possible new lands in space.
My last time period is in the 1900's. In the 1900's, people are making it possible to go into space, and search for man's utopia. In 1958, the first satellite to ever go into space, the Explorer 1 was launched. Another event that happened in the 1900's was the Hubble Space Telescope launched into space in 1990. Society in the 1900's included the invention of cars and the airplane. The industrial revolution was still taking place during the 1900's also. There was also a "space race" between different countries. Russia and America were competing about advancing in astronomical technology. The "space race" caused people to want to work faster and move forward in astronomy.
In conclusion, the 1500's, 1600's and 1900's were the most significant time periods in astronomy. Over a long period of time, we have looked to the stars for a place where we can imagine life living on stars and planets. In the 1500's, the idea of astronomy and what was in space was unfamiliar to people, but after the idea of the revolutions, people started to wonder about space more. In the 1600's, the telescope was made, causing people to discover astronomical things such as the Milky Way. In the 1900's, people wanted to actually go into space, and the Hubble took pictures and sent them back to Earth, letting astronomers know what's out in the universe. The general changes occurring over time were that there were more discoveries and technological expansion. People can dream of other worlds perhaps with life which have developed solutions to the conflicts on earth. With such conflicts solved, earth would be what we dream of as utopia to all humans by looking at the stars, and discovering new things, we have come much closer to utopia.
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