Astronomers have constructed telescopes of every kind - massive observatories designed to pick up faint traces of light across space.

The first publication by Galileo Galilei has set a new auction record for the celebrated astronomer, selling for $1.5 million at Christie's.

2009 is the International Year of Astronomy, celebrating the 400th anniversary of Galileo turning a looking glass to the sky and shaking up humanity's view of the heavens. Then, puny telescopes ...