What observation by Galileo Galilei directly refuted a key critique leveled against the Copernican model?
Answer
Spotting four objects orbiting Jupiter
One of Galileo's most impactful observations involved discovering four celestial bodies clearly revolving around the planet Jupiter. This provided direct physical evidence that not every single object in the heavens revolved around the Earth, which was a central tenet of the prevailing geocentric cosmology that the Copernican model sought to overturn. By proving that secondary centers of motion existed, this observation actively refuted one of the strongest lines of argument used by critics against the Sun-centered system, thereby supporting the heliocentric view that the Earth itself was in motion.
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