The History of Astronomy for Kids and Adults

People that lived in ancient times were curious about the things they saw in the sky. They wanted to know why day and night happened. They wanted to know about the sun and moon. They were curious just like us!

These ancient people noticed that heavenly bodies moved in ways that could be predicted. Pretty soon they learned that they could use the stars to help tell time. They learned that they could tell the directions just by the positions of certain stars, like the North Star. Ancient people used what they learned about the stars to help them plant certain crops. They didn't have some of the tools we have today. Tools like telescopes and software.

Certain groups of ancient people made great discoveries in the science of astronomy. So we can't talk about astronomy without talking about them. Important discoveries in the history of astronomy were made by:

• Babylonian astronomy
• Ancient Greek Astronomy
• Ancient Egyptian Astronomy
• Ancient Mayan Astronomy
• Aztec Astronomy
• Inca astronomy
• Ancient Chinese Astronomy
• Medieval astronomy
• Islamic astronomy
• Indian astronomy
• Native American astronomy

So you see, the astronomy history is a fascinating journey into the minds and lives of these ancient people!

More astronomy history resources

Biblical astronomy and the Star of Bethlehem