Richard Panchyk - Galileo for Kids: His Life and Ideas, 25 Activities

Cover and interior design:Monica Baziuk
Interior illustrations:Laura A. DArgo
Credits: Front cover ( Jupiter), pages vii, 3, 58, 63, and 66; and back cover (rings of Saturn) courtesy of NASA. Pages 24, 43, and 150 courtesy of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration/Department of Commerce. Pages 13, 46, 67, and 118 images History of Science Collection, University of Oklahoma Libraries. All other illustrations courtesy of Richard Panchyk.

L IBRARY OF C ONGRESS C ATALOGING-IN- P UBLICATION D ATA

Panchyk, Richard.

Galileo for kids : his life and ideas / Richard Panchyk.1st ed.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 1-55652-566-4

1. Galilei, Galileo, 15641642Juvenile literature.

2. AstronomersItalyBiographyJuvenile literature. 3. Physicists ItalyBiographyJuvenile literature. I. Title.

QB36.G2P17 2005

520.92dc22

2004022936

2005 by Richard Panchyk

All rights reserved

First edition

Published by Chicago Review Press, Incorporated

814 North Franklin Street

Chicago, Illinois 60610

ISBN 1-55652-566-4

Printed in Singapore by CS Graphics

5 4 3 2 1

In memory of the learned

Magister Blasius Klettenmeyer (15591600), who started me on my journey

Two truths cannot be contrary to one another.

G ALILEO G ALILEI , 1613

1
S CIENCE AND A STRONOMY B EFORE G ALILEO

2
B EGINNINGS

3
P OSITION AT P ISA

4
T HE T ELESCOPE

5
T HE S TORM B UILDS

6
T HE T WO S YSTEMS

7
G ALILEOS L AST D AYS

By Buzz Aldrin

W HEN G ALILEO first turned his newly invented telescope toward the heavens, he saw the vastness of the universe. He discovered distant stars, mountains on the moon, and spots on the sun. His work extended our knowledge of astronomy by leaps and bounds. Galileos belief that the earth revolved around the sun was controversial at the time, but his stubborn insistence on the truth laid the foundation for the modern science of astronomy.

When Neil Armstrong and I set foot on the moon in 1969, it was truly a triumph of science. The revolution started by Galileo had entered a wonderful new phase. Instead of simply gazing into space, we were now traveling there. Instead of looking at moon rocks, we were touching them. I have always believed that space exploration holds great potential. The exploration of space will not only help us understand the science of how the universe works, but it will also help us understand our own planet and ourselves.

Galileo was a genius whose curiosity was his guiding passion. We should all be inspired by his thirst for knowledge. If we strive toward quenching our own thirst for knowledge, we will no doubt send astronauts to Mars and beyond.

Galileos life story is a wonderful lesson in genius and persistence. Though the events in this book took place 400 years ago, they are still very current. With every small step we take into space, we should remember that in Galileos time, just looking into a telescope was a brave step.

Nothing is impossible if we have the courage to turn our dreams into reality and the will to satisfy our never-ending curiosity about the heavens above.

Buzz Aldrin, Ph.D.

Colonel, U.S. Air Force, Retired

Gemini XII astronaut, 1966

Apollo XI astronaut, 1969

Born in 1930, Buzz Aldrin attended the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. He began his career with the Air Force and flew 62 combat missions in the Korean War. He was selected by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to be an astronaut in 1963. In 1966 he participated in the Gemini XII mission, where he orbited the earth for four days. In 1969 he joined Neil Armstrong and Michael Collins on the Apollo 11 mission to the moon. On July 20, 1969, he became the second man to walk on the moon. Aldrin earned a Ph.D. degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and helped NASA develop methods for space rendezvous and docking of vehicles. He has written several books, including Return to Earth (about the Apollo 11 mission) and several science fiction novels.

Buzz Aldrin on the moon, 1969.

I N THIS BOOK , I have tried to give readers a broad picture of Galileos life, discussing his most important scientific discoveries along with the struggles of his personal and public life. My goal was to give readers insight into the man and the world in which he lived.

Throughout the book, I have used the text of letters to and from Galileo. Luckily, much of Galileos correspondence has been preserved. Some of these have been borrowed from mid- to late 19th century books on Galileo, such as The Story of Galileo, Karl von Geblers Galileo Galilei and the Roman Curia, Philarte Chasles Galileo Galilei, sa vie, son procs, et ses contemporains, and Mary Allan-Olneys Private Life of Galileo. For some excerpts I have taken the original Italian directly from Opere di Galileo Galilei or from Vincenzo Vivianis Racconto historico della vita di Signor Galileo Galilei, Nobile Fiorentino and translated them into English. In all cases, the intent is to provide the reader with the best understanding of Galileos life and times. It is often hard to present in English the forceful yet melodic sense of Galileos original Italian. Any text in [ ] is an explanation I have supplied about the information given in the quotes.

There are a great deal of scientific and historical terms and personal names mentioned in the book. To help avoid confusion, glossaries of key terms and key people in Galileos story have been included in the back of the book. There is also a list of key locations, Galileos key writings, and the popes and grand dukes of Tuscany during Galileos lifetime. Note that the Jesuits, Dominicans, Benedictines, Carmelites, and Franciscans mentioned throughout the book are all orders of the Catholic Church.

T HANKS TO ALL those who have helped and encouraged me during my Galilean odyssey. Very special thanks to the legendary Buzz Aldrin for inspiring me and for writing the foreword. Thanks to Cynthia Sherry for helping me refine the book proposal and see it through the editorial process. Also thanks to my wife, Caren, for her help and encouragement. Thanks to Matthew and Elizabeth for allowing me a few minutes here and there to write this book. And a special thanks to Matthew for helping me test some of the activities. Sincere thanks to all those excellent researchers who have come before me with considerable work to shed some light upon Galileos life and times.

G ALILEO WAS A TRUE GENIUS . Though we think of him mainly as an astronomer, he was a man of many interests. He enjoyed science, mathematics, music, and art and made great discoveries that revolutionized the world. Not simply a scientific philosopher, he also applied his ideas to practical inventions. This is the story of a thinker who was truly ahead of his time.