Starlight Detectives

Starlight Detectives
Authors
Hirshfeld, Alan
Publisher
Bellevue Literary Press
Tags
science , history
ISBN
9781934137796
Date
2014-06-16T00:00:00+00:00
Size
7.67 MB
Lang
en
Downloaded: 32 times

Entertaining popular astronomy that fills a gap in the presentation of scientific history, namely the remarkable transformation of classical observational astronomy into modern astronomy. At a time when astronomy was exemplified by the tedious accountancy of star positions and movements, an intrepid few--mostly amateurs--strove to apply new technologies to the exploration of the heavens. Their stunning discovery: that the universe is expanding and the galaxies, previously believed to float serenely in the void, are in fact hurtling apart at incredible speed. From the dawn of photography through the discoveries of Edwin Hubble and the heroic contributions of unsung inventors and stargazers, Hirshfeld reveals the incredible stories behind the birth of modern astronomy.

Picks up where Hirshfeld's Parallax: The Race to Measure the Cosmos left off. Parallax, a chronicle of astronomy's early history, sold 10,000 copies when it was first published by Macmillan/Holt and is being reissued by Dover Publications in August 2013.

Alan Hirshfeld is a highly-regarded popular astronomy expert who regularly reviews books for the Wall Street Journal, writes for Sky Telescope, * the American Journal of Physics, BBC History Magazine, and American Scientist,* and has made radio and television appearances on NPR, PBS, and C-SPAN.