German astronomer Johannes Hevelius is often regarded as one of the last great astronomers to carry out major observational work without a telescope. With the aid of only a quadrant and an alidade, Hevelius compiled a catalog of more than fifteen hundred stars with unprecedented accuracy. It was the most comprehensive celestial atlas of its time. However, it was through the use of telescopes that Hevelius gained fame as “the founder of lunar topography”. He produced the first detailed map of the moon documenting every crater, slope and valley that he could see with his telescope.

The surface of the Moon by Johannes Hevelius.