In what year did Galileo Galilei receive word of the Dutch perspective glass?
1609
The crucial moment for astronomical application occurred in 1609 when news of the newly invented 'Dutch perspective glass' traveled to the Italian scholar Galileo Galilei. Upon receiving this information, Galileo, driven by intense intellectual curiosity, immediately recognized the profound potential of the device for systematically studying the heavens. He did not simply adopt the existing design; he rapidly improved upon it through iterative engineering, grinding his own superior lenses. This personal refinement process allowed him to significantly increase the instrument's performance, ultimately achieving magnifications of approximately twenty times the naked-eye view, transforming the simple novelty into a powerful scientific tool.
