31 DEC. 2003
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1573: On 10 January 1573, Simon Marius was born.
Marius was a German astronomer, a pupil of Tycho Brahe, who named Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto, the four largest moons of Jupiter. The names are those of mythological figures with whom Jupiter fell in love. Marius was one of the earliest users of a telescope.
A dispute arose when Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei also claimed to have discovered them, about 1610, but is probable they made the discoveries independently.
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7 January
1610: On 7 January 1610, Galileo wrote his first letter describing telescopic observations.
6 January
1998: On 6 January 1998, NASA launched Lunar Prospector, a satellite designed for a low-polar orbit investigation of the Moon.
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