08/01/08 Celebrating the 400th Anniversary of the Invention of the Telescope!

This year, 2008, marks the 400th anniversary of the invention of the telescope. In 1608, Hans Lipperhey, spectacle-maker and inhabitant of Middelburg (The Netherlands), applied to the State-General in The Hague for a patent for his invention of an instrument with which one "could see in the distance". His application is the earliest evidence of the invention of the telescope and marks a historic event that would change the natural sciences forever.
The invention of the telescope in 1608 will be commemorated by the Philippus Lansbergen Public Observatory (Middelburg, The Netherlands) extensively throughout 2008. We have set up a special website on which all activities, in Middelburg but also in other cities, are mentioned, together with background information on the history surrounding the telescope. The website is both in Dutch and English and is found here: www.inventionofthetelescope.eu.

On the 4th of October, this year, it will be 50 years since man began conquering space. The Russians were the first to put a satellite into Earth's orbit. It started with a simpel beep-beep signal but this event was the stepping stone to manned space flight less than 4 years later. This month, 50 years of space flight will take a central place. As from Thursday, October 4, a paper model of the Sputnik rocket, in scale 1:96, can be downloaded from our website. It's not an easy model, but courage and persistance are required, if one is to conquer space. Please visit our observatory, this month, and learn more about the history of space flight and everything around it to make it possible and read our article about the history is space flight.