Galileo Galilei (1564-1642) was an Italian astronomer, physicist, and philosopher. Some of his key contributions include improving the telescope and making important astronomical observations that supported Copernicanism, such as discovering Jupiter's four largest moons. He was born in Pisa, Italy and died in Arcetri, Italy. Galileo invented the telescope and worked on a pendulum clock. He also made contributions to observational astronomy and physics.