Thomas Harriot

Yes, Thomas Harriot produced the first known telescopic drawing of the Moon on July 26, 1609, several months before Galileo Galilei began his systematic lunar observations later that same year. However, Harriot did not publish his findings, while Galileo published his detailed observations in 'Sidereus Nuncius' in March 1610, which is why Galileo is more widely credited with the discovery.

Harriot served as a surveyor, scientific observer, and linguist on the 1585–1586 Roanoke expedition organized by Sir Walter Raleigh. He learned the Algonquian language from two Native Americans who had been brought to England, and during the expedition he produced detailed maps and observations of the Virginia region, later published as 'A Briefe and True Report of the New Found Land of Virginia' in 1588.

Harriot was notoriously reluctant to publish his work, and many of his astronomical and mathematical discoveries remained in manuscript form until long after his death in 1621. Unlike Galileo, who aggressively published and promoted his findings, Harriot appears to have been content with private inquiry, and it was only in the 18th and 19th centuries that scholars began to recognize the extent of his independent discoveries in optics, astronomy, and algebra.

Harriot made significant contributions to algebra, including early work on symbolic notation and the use of inequality signs. He also independently discovered the law of refraction (Snell's Law) before Willebrord Snellius, and conducted early experiments in optics and ballistics. His mathematical manuscripts were not fully published until decades after his death, which delayed recognition of his contributions.