Christiaan Huygens

Christiaan Huygens was born on April 14, 1629. According to family tradition, he should have become a diplomat, however, he turned to mathematics instead. From 1655, he devoted himself to building microscopes and binoculars. With these apparatuses he made many astronomical discoveries, one example being the Orion nebula. He led a secluded existence, but traveled several times to Paris and London. In 1666, he started working at the Academy of Science in Paris, returning home in 1681. Despite failing health, he traveled to London in 1689 to meet with Newton. On July 8, 1695, he passed away in The Hague, his home town.