Johannes Hevelius (1611-1687) was a Polish astronomer based in Danzig (Gdańsk). He worked from his own privately funded observatory, creating maps of the Moon's surface, discovering the first variable star, and spotting several new comets. His Prodromus Astronomiae, published posthumously and including many of his own engravings, was the most comprehensive and accurate catalogue of the stars yet compiled.
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Definition
Timeline
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1611 - 1687Life of the Polish astronomer Johannes Hevelius.
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28 Jan 1611The astronomer Johannes Hevelius is born in Danzig (modern Gdańsk) in Poland.
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1641Johannes Hevelius builds his Stellaeburg observatory in Danzig, Poland.
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1647Johannes Hevelius' Selenographia containing his map of the Moon is published.
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1664Johannes Hevelius is made one of the first foreign fellows of the Royal Society in London.
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1668Johannes Hevelius' Cometographia is published.
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1673Johannes Hevelius' Machina coelestis (part one) is published.
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1679Johannes Hevelius' Machina coelestis (part two) is published.
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1679Edmond Halley compares astronomical data with Johannes Hevelius in Danzig.
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28 Jan 1687The astronomer Johannes Hevelius dies in Danzig (modern Gdańsk) in Poland.
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1690Johannes Hevelius' Firmamentum Sobiescianum is published.
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1690Johannes Hevelius' Prodromus Astronomiae, which contains his star map, is published.
