Galilean moons
Satélites galileanos de Júpiter
- Date
- 1610 · confidence high
- Place
- Padua, Republic of Venice, Italy
- Credited to
- Galileo Galilei
- People
- 👤 Galileo Galilei1564–1642
- Field
- Cosmos & Earth
⚠️ Disputed: the sources disagree.
What was discovered
Four moons orbiting Jupiter, observed in January 1610: the first system of bodies found orbiting something other than the Earth.
Simon Marius claimed simultaneous discovery, and his names (Io, Europa, Ganymede, Callisto) are the ones in use.
What it led to
- Proof that not everything orbits the Earth
- Empirical support for heliocentrism
- Method for measuring longitude at sea
- Measurement of the speed of light (Rømer)