Benchmark 10B
Historical Perspectives: Uniting the Heavens and Earth
Grades 9-12, page 243

For several centuries, Newton's science was accepted without major changes because it explained so many different phenomena, could be used to predict many physical events (such as the appearance of Halley's comet), was mathematically sound, and had many practical applications.
 

See Content Standard G History and Nature of Science (grades 9-12): Historical Perspectives.