The Solar System and Moon Landing Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The Solar System and Moon Landing - Assignment Example The researcher states that people’s understanding of the solar system has changed significantly over the years. This is attributed to the several new scientific discoveries that have changed what we initially knew about the solar system. The Ptolemaic Theory initially made people believe that the earth was the universe’s center around which all other objects orbited. Because of the theory, the ancient Greeks counted the sun and the moon together with Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn as planets. In this regard, they excluded the earth as a planet based on the belief that the earth was the universe’s center around which everything on space revolved. However, this belief changed later in the 17th century through the Copernican Revolution, when astronomers discovered that the sun is the universe’s center around which all planets revolved including the earth. The discovery also showed that the Moon is not a planet, rather a satellite of the Earth. Few years later, astronauts added Uranus and Neptune as planets. As a result, people were made to believe that only eight planets exist that revolves around the sun. Pluto was discovered later on in 1930 as the ninth planet revolving around the sun. Pluto according to astronomers is much smaller than Mercury or planetary moons. Telescopic findings showed that Pluto is not similar to the planets discovered earlier. As more discoveries became of Pluto, astronomers questioned whether Pluto should be regarded as a planet or not. (Cain, 2008). Even though, Pluto maintained its status as a planet through to the 1980s, things began changing in 1990s when astronomers, through telescopic observation discovered numerous icy worlds revolving the sun in around Neptune called the Kuiper Belt. With the discovery of Kuiper Belt and several icy bodies, scientists began to think Pluto as a KBO. Later on in 2005, scientists made a pronouncement that a tenth planet had been discovered. This has left peopl e wondering as to what planet means. Certainly, the new discoveries have changed significantly, what we initially knew as the solar system. In fact, as more discoveries continue to emerge, people’s understanding of what constitutes the solar system will continue to change (Cain, 2008). The Moon landing The Moon landing on July 20, 1969 is a classical historical event that has changed the scientific understanding of the moon in entirety. It marked the first ever moon landing that placed America in the lead in terms of technological advancements. The event took the Soviet Union by surprise as they watched in disarray the American astronauts placing the American flag on the moon’s surface. According to research, the event gave America the prestige that it lacked prior to this historical event (Spillius, 2009). The moon landing of 1969 has had a lasting impact on people’s scientific understanding for a number of reasons. For instance, America’s technology has significantly advanced due to the landing. In addition, not only does America have numerous microwaves, codeless vacuum cleaners,