Born on this day in 1564 in Pisa, Galileo Galilei made remarkable contributions to physics and astronomy. The Italian astronomer, physicist, and engineer is hailed as the ‘father of modern science’.
Galileo lived through the Italian Renaissance, but spent a large part of his life defending his theories which challenged pre-existing scientific notions. He was particularly hounded for supporting Copernicus’s theory that the Earth was part of a heliocentric model—revolved around the Sun. Besides his contributions to astronomy, he is also credited with framing fundamental laws of physics, including the law of the pendulum and that of falling bodies.
He died in 1642 at the age of 77.
On his birth anniversary, take this ThePrint quiz to check how much you know about Galileo, the ‘father of modern science’.
(Quiz compiled by Anant Tanikella)