15 February each year is Galileo Day - a celebration of the anniversary of Galileo Galilei's birth.
Who was Galileo?
Galileo was a true Renaissance man. A physicist, a mathematician, an astromaer and a philosopher Galileo was best known for his work supporting Copernicanism, showing the Earth was in fact not at the center of the universe.
Galileo is considered to be one of the key figures in the history of modern science and one of the major players in the Scientific Revolution.
Why celebrate Galileo?
Galileo was a truely inspirational scientist. Like Darwin, the ideas he put forward, though correct, were met with large amounts of controversy and resistance from the church. But he stuck to the scientific method and followed the conclusions the evidence lead to.
Of course, like Darwin once again, he was eventually vindicated though unfortunately not within his life time, spending the last years of his life under house arrest under orders of the Inquisition.
Traditional celebrations
The best way to celebrate Galileo Day is with a traditional feast. Invite your friends round, knock up a slap up meal and toast to the man himself.
Given Galileo's area of work it is also highly appropriate to go star gazing on this night. Have a search round for your logo astrology society and have them organise something or if you happen to have a telescope yourself, organise a dinner and star spotting evening.
More information
If you want any more information or want to submit some photos, drop us an email at info [at] galileoday [dot] org.