The history of the telescope begins with the first spyglass and spectacles. It was Galileo who designed and used the first refractor telescope, with improvements fostered by his contemporary Kepler, and soon scientists all over the world were fascinated with the use and improvement of such device. Of course there is some controversy over whether Galileo was the first to invent the telescope (though he is undisputedly the most renowned) or whether it was a Dutch spectacle maker named Hans Lippershey. It is said that two children were playing with Hans' lenses outside and put together of them together. When the children looked at a distant church tower they were amazed to see it magnified. After Hans' own verification he put together what he referred to as a "looker" and attempted to sell it to the Dutch Army.
Galileo pushed a book about his discovers called The Starry Messengers and controversy ran amuck. It was Galileo who first told the learned world that the moon wasn't flat, and that the universe did not revolve around the earth. The name telescope was given to the device at a party Galileo attended where he allowed the guests to view the night sky through it. The party's host, Frederico Cesi, accepted the name given by an unknown Greek poet and then it was forever known as such. Later it was classified as a refractor telescope as the lens refracts, or bends, light.
Issac Newton, some years later, followed up on the invention of Galileo (or Hans, depending on who one asks) and created the reflector telescope. This telescope used a parabolic mirror to gather light, and concentrate an image, before sending it to the eyepiece. This allowed the separation of colors for the existing telescope to be eliminated and created a more effective view.
Technology and science has created several other advancement for the telescope. There are differences with portability, weight, different magnifications and even options for audio features and use of computers. As the world becomes more technologically advanced, the telescope will follow, though the basic principles developed by Galileo and Newton will always be at the core of any telescope.
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