Astronomy is the scientific study of heavenly bodies. It is a study of planets, stars, sun and other objects in the space. ‘Astronomy’ comes from a Greek word meaning “arrangement of stars”.

The ancient astronomer predicted many facts about the space. They predicted about eclipse and the constellation of stars. They used complicated devices named ASTROLABE to follow the motion of the stars, planets and moon.

Telescope opened the space for the astronomers. In the early 1600, Dutch optician Hans Lippershey invented lenses that formed a magnified image of a distant object. Italian physicist and astronomer Galileo set those lenses in the telescope. He first looked at the night sky through a telescope in 1609. He described the craters on the moon, the moons of the Jupiter and the Milky Way.

Telescope can make things look closer than they are. Telescope contains lenses and mirror that allow astronomers to see objects in space much larger and brighter and clearer. Light from the distant objects passes through a lens. It reflects off a mirror and is focused by a lens that forms the image of the object in the eye. The larger the lens of the telescope, the more the light it collects and the image looks brighter. Telescope, which uses one lens, is called REFRACTING TELESCOPE. Telescope, which uses mirror is called REFLECTING TELESCOPE.

Today there are wide variety of powerful telescope. Not all telescope use light to form images. A radio telescope produces pictures of distant stars and galaxies from radio waves. Telescope is used to detect radio waves, lights and rays coming from outer space. They can study planets and stars by using remote controlled telescope in space. There are telescopes that can form images by detecting infrared rays, ultraviolet rays and X-rays.

In 1989, the Space Shuttle launched HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE. As the telescope is above the earth, it gives a better view of the stars and other objects in the universe than the telescope on the surface of the earth.

Today, the astronomers are building OBSERVATORIES. The observatory is dome shaped which slide open, and the telescope can be directed to any point in the sky.