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The Discovery of Neptune
The Discovery of Neptune
Neptune's existance was theroized by many astronomers before its confirmation in 1846, most notably Urbain Le Verrier, John Couch Adams, and Johann Gottfried Galle. It was Galle who confirmed the planet and Le Verrier proposed the name we now associate with it today. Galileo Galilei also documented Neptune twice but mistook the planet for a star in 1612, making him technically the first to discover the celestial body.
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Urbain Le Verrier predicted the existence and position of Neptune by only using mathematics
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John Couch Adams simultaneously proposed another mathematics theory, although it was less accurate than Le Verrier
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Johann Gottfried Galle was the first person to see and accurately identify Neptune as a planet with the help of Le Verrier.
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Galileo Galilei was the first person to observe Neptune on December 28th 1612, although he mistook it for a star.
Origin of Neptune's Name
Origin of Neptune's Name
Neptune was named after the Roman god of the sea by Le Verrier. 19th-century astronomers continued the tradition of naming local planets after Greek gods.
Formation of Neptune
Formation of Neptune
Neptune was formed close to the sun due to the combination of swirling gas and dust, but It was later pulled out farther into the solar system. The planet formed about 4.5 billion years ago around the same time as the rest of the modern solar system.
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