400 years, 7,500 words: A history of planetary science
Thursday, July 29, 2010 - 15:14
in Astronomy & Space
In the four centuries since Galileo pointed his handheld cardboard-and-glass telescope skyward and Johannes Kepler described two laws of planetary motion, humans have come to know our solar system almost as intimately as we know our hometowns. So, consider the challenge in reviewing all of planetary science since 1610 ... in 4,000 words or fewer.