Date of Award

9-2016

Document Type

Thesis

Primary Advisor

Larry Isenhower

Secondary Advisor

Mark Cullum

Committee Reader

Michael Daugherity

Abstract

This manuscript is in two parts: an exposition on Galileo's original sunspot observations in their historical context, and a report that documents my reconstruction and use of a Galilean telescope. The paper briefly addresses the religious, cultural, and academic background of 17th century Italy to illustrate their bearing on Galileo's observations and subsequent conclusions. The report documents the construction of my Galilean telescope, the results of its use, project extensions, and closing remarks. In both sections, the core of the body is text, but due to the visual nature of the project, I felt it appropriate to include the requisite number of images.

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.

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