During the Italian Renaissance, a period of history where art and science prospered, scientists like Galileo advanced the study of astronomy. Galileo lived in Florence, a city about an hour south of Bologna. There, he built some of the first telescopes, discovered the moons of Jupiter, described the stars of the Milky Way galaxy and most famously, proved that the Earth orbits the Sun. His science was advanced for the time period, and many officials disliked that his discoveries disagreed with ideas that the rulers had about Earth and the solar system. His work, and the work of other astronomers, has shaped the field from the Renaissance until today.
Bologna is home to the oldest university in Europe, and also has a long history of astronomy and physics advancements. I visited some of the university's museums this week and learned how Italian explorers used the stars to navigate during ocean expeditions. I saw early examples of telescopes and a sextant which is a tool that uses the Sun to map a sailor's voyage.
My research in Italy owes a lot to these early uses of astronomy. During my time at Michigan State University, I majored in the field of astrophysics - which is the study of space using physics.
