The Starry Messenger
by Galileo Galilei · Sidereus Nuncius
Assigned by 1 of the 9 reading lists, catalogue entry only
- Written
- 1610
- Language
- Latin
- Length
- Short · 60 ppunder 120 pages
- Difficulty
- Approachable1 of 5 for a first-year reader
We recommendSidereus Nuncius, or The Sidereal Messenger, translated by Albert Van HeldenUniversity of Chicago Press, 1989A complete translation with Galileo's drawings and an introduction on the telescope and its reception.
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A short Latin pamphlet, published in Venice in March 1610, reporting what Galileo saw through the telescope he had built the previous year. The moon has mountains and valleys like the earth; the Milky Way is made of countless stars; and four moons circle Jupiter, which Galileo named the Medicean stars after his patron. The book made him famous across Europe and gave the first observational evidence against a perfect, unchanging heaven.
No reading guide yet
The catalogue entry above is complete: the dates, the form, the themes and every program that assigns The Starry Messenger are verified against each program's published list.
What is missing is the part that takes real work: the summary, the key passages, and a recommended translation. The edition named below is the one most programs assign, so the buy links are useful already.
