Paul Murdin

Nieuporządkowane życie planet

An insider’s guide to astronomy reveals everything you need to know about the planets, their satellites, and our place in the solar system. We have the impression that the solar system is perfectly regular like a clock or a planetarium instrument. On a short timescale it is. But, seen in a longer perspective, the planets, and their satellites, have exciting lives, full of events. For example, did you know that Saturn’s moon, Titan, boasts lakes which contain liquid methane surrounded by soaring hills and valleys, exactly as the earth did before life evolved on our fragile planet? Or that Mercury is the shyest planet? Or, that Mars’s biggest volcano is one hundred times the size of Earth’s, or that its biggest canyon is ten times the depth of the Grand Canyon, or that it wasn’t always red, but blue? The culmination of a lifetime of astronomy and wonder, Paul Murdin’s enchanting new book reveals everything you ever wanted to know about the planets, their satellites, and our place in the solar system.

Order, Chaos, and Uniqueness in the Solar System

The Secret Lives of Planets

The story of our Universe, from its beginning in the first milliseconds of the Big Bang up to our present moment and beyond, told in a gripping narrative by one of the world's leading astronomers.

A Biography

The Universe

La vita segreta dei pianeti. Ordine, caos e unicità del sistema solare

Discoveries in astronomy challenge our fundamental ideas about the universe. Where the astronomers of antiquity once spoke of fixed stars, we now speak of whirling galaxies and giant supernovae. Where we once thought Earth was the center of the universe, we now see it as a small planet among millions of other planetary systems, any number of which could also hold life. These dramatic shifts in our perspective hinge on thousands of individual discoveries: moments when it became clear to someone that some part of the universe—whether a planet or a supermassive black hole—was not as it once seemed. Secrets of the Universe invites us to participate in these moments of revelation and wonder as scientists first experienced them. Renowned astronomer Paul Murdin here provides an ambitious and exciting overview of astronomy, conveying for newcomers and aficionados alike the most important discoveries of this science and introducing the many people who made them. Lavishly illustrated with more than 400 color images, the book outlines in seventy episodes what humankind has learned about the cosmos—and what scientists around the world are poised to learn in the coming decades. Arranged by types of discovery, it also provides an overarching narrative throughout that explains how the earliest ideas of the cosmos evolved into the cutting-edge astronomy we know today. Along the way, Murdin never forgets that science is a human endeavor, and that every discovery was the result of inspiration, hard work, or luck—usually all three. The first section of Secrets explores discoveries made before the advent of the telescope, from stars and constellations to the position of our own sun. The second considers discoveries made within our own solar system, from the phases of Venus and the moons of Jupiter to the comets and asteroids at its distant frontier. The next section delves into discoveries of the dynamic universe, like gravitation, relativity, pulsars, and black holes. A fourth examines discoveries made within our own galaxy, from interstellar nebulae and supernovae to Cepheid variable stars and extrasolar planets. Next Murdin turns to discoveries made within the deepest recesses of the universe, like quasars, supermassive black holes, and gamma ray bursters. In the end, Murdin unveils where astronomy still teeters on the edge of discovery, considering dark matter and alien life.

How We Discovered the Cosmos

Secrets of the Universe

How did our universe come to exist? Why do stars shine? Is there life beyond the Earth? For millennia, humans have looked to the celestial sphere to explain the cosmos,first recording the movements of the Moon 25,000 years ago. Since the Enlightenmentand the dawn of the space age, scientists have been unravelling cosmic mysteries, andraising astonishing new questions for future generations to answer. Today we live inan age of unprecedented astronomical revelation, from the discovery of water on Marsto the detection of gravitational waves and the first photograph of a black hole. World-renowned astronomer Paul Murdin explains the science behind these discoveries, along with the passions, strugglesand quirks of fate that made them some of the most intriguing dramas of their times,demonstrating how human ingenuity and technological innovation have expandedour knowledge of the Universe beyond anything our ancestors - even as recently asa generation ago - could ever have imagined.

La astronomía histórica y actual en una síntesis humana centrada en la emoción del descubrimiento.

Secretos del universo

Athem W. Alsabti

This reference work gathers all of the latest research in the supernova field areas to create a definitive source book on supernovae, their remnants and related topics. It includes each distinct subdiscipline, including stellar types, progenitors, stellar evolution, nucleosynthesis of elements, supernova types, neutron stars and pulsars, black holes, swept up interstellar matter, cosmic rays, neutrinos from supernovae, supernova observations in different wavelengths, interstellar molecules and dust. While there is a great deal of primary and specialist literature on supernovae, with a great many scientific groups around the world focusing on the phenomenon and related subdisciplines, nothing else presents an overall survey. This handbook closes that gap at last. As a comprehensive and balanced collection that presents the current state of knowledge in the broad field of supernovae, this is to be used as a basis for further work and study by graduate students, astronomers and astrophysicists working in close/related disciplines, and established groups. Editorial Board EDITORS-IN-CHIEF Athem W. Alsabti University College London Observatory, University College London, London, UK Sections: Supernovae and Supernova Remnants Supernovae and the Environment of the Solar System Paul Murdin Institute of Astronomy, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK Section: Supernovae and Supernova Remnants SECTION EDITORS David Arnett Steward Observatory,University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA Section: Nucleosynthesis in Supernovae Phil Charles University of Southampton, School of Physics and Astronomy, Southampton, UK Section: Stellar Remnants - Neutron Stars and Black Holes Robert A. Fesen Department of Physics and Astronomy, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH, USA Section: Evolution of Supernovae and the Interstellar Medium David A. Green Cavendish Laboratory, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK Section: Historical Supernovae Mario Hamuy Astronomy Department, University of Chile, Santiago, Chile; Millennium Institute of Astrophysics, Santiago, Chile Section: Cosmology from Supernovae Peter Hoeflich Department of Physics, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL, USA Section: Explosion Mechanisms of Supernovae Ken’ichi Nomoto Kavli Institute for the Physics and Mathematics of the Universe (WPI), The University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Chiba, Japan Section: Supernovae and Stellar Evolution Stephen Smart Astrophysics Research Centre, Queen's University, Belfast; Northern Ireland, UK Section: Light Curves and Spectra of Supernovae Mark Sullivan School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Southampton, Highfield, Southampton, UK Section: Types of Supernovae Friedrich-Karl Thielemann Department of Physics, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland Sections: Neutrinos, Gravitational Waves and Cosmic Rays Nucleosynthesis in Supernovae Chengmin M. Zhang National Astronomical Observatories, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China; Key Laboratory of Radio Astronomy, CAS, Beijing, China; School of Physical Science, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China Section: Stellar Remnants - Neutron Stars and Black Holes

Handbook of Supernovae

How did our universe come to exist? Why do stars shine? Is there life beyond the Earth? For millennia, humans have looked to the celestial sphere to explain the cosmos,first recording the movements of the Moon 25,000 years ago. Since the Enlightenmentand the dawn of the space age, scientists have been unravelling cosmic mysteries, andraising astonishing new questions for future generations to answer. Today we live inan age of unprecedented astronomical revelation, from the discovery of water on Marsto the detection of gravitational waves and the first photograph of a black hole. World-renowned astronomer Paul Murdin explains the science behind these discoveries, along with the passions, strugglesand quirks of fate that made them some of the most intriguing dramas of their times,demonstrating how human ingenuity and technological innovation have expandedour knowledge of the Universe beyond anything our ancestors even as recently asa generation ago could ever have imagined. ONIX short

Lavishly illustrated with both historic images and the latest satellite photography, Discovering the Universe tells the story of humanity's quest to unlock the secrets of our cosmos. Beginning with the musing of Stone Age peoples on the position of the stars and planets, it then moves through the ages to Galileo's first visions of Orion, to the Moon landing, and right up to awe-inspiring photos of our magnificent universe sent from the Planck telescope.

The Story of Astronomy

Discovering the Universe

Aphra Behn

M. de Fontenelle (Bernard Le Bovier)

Bernard De Fontenelle

In this charming and witty dialogue translated by the first professional woman writer in English, a 17th century astronomer staying at the chateau of a beautiful Marchioness accompanies her into her garden at night and introduces her to the new discoveries of astronomy Although more than 300 years old, Fontenelle's dialogues in a garden over five nights are still a surprisingly painless way to learn about the sun, the moon, the planets, and the stars, even though new planets were later discovered and modern science has filled out many details Fontenelle could not have known. Only the confidence with which he discusses inhabitants of the planets, the moon, and even the sun is now seen as misplaced. This is no lecture, but a conversation with the cut and thrust of intelligent argument as the Marchioness challenges each of the astronomer's assertions and requires him to explain the evidence. Fontenelle's work has been through the hands of many different translators, but Aphra Behn's translation, one of the earliest, adds the feminine wit of a leading dramatist to the work, in the first modern edition of this translation.

A Discovery of New Worlds

[the text below needs editing and we must be careful not to say things about Dan Brown's book that could get Springer in legal trouble] Dan Brown’s novel, The Da Vinci Code, was first published in 2003; its sales have reached 40 million worldwide. The book mixes a small spice of fact into a large dollop of fiction to create an entertaining novel of intrigue, adventure, romance, danger and conspiracy, which have been imaginatively worked together to cook up the successful bestseller. Most interest in the book’s origins has centred on the sensational religious aspects. Dan Brown has written: ‘All of the art, architecture, secret rituals, secret societies, all of that is historical fact.’ This gives an air of authenticity to the book. Brown has, however, made up the religious doctrines, or based them on questionable accounts by others. The locations of the actions of The Da Vinci Code are not, however, made up. The present book is the scientific story behind the scene of several of the book’s actions that take place on the axis of France that passes through Paris. The Paris Meridian is the name of this location. It is the line running north-south through the astronomical observatory in Paris. One of the original intentions behind the founding of the Paris Observatory was to determine and measure this line. The French government financed the Paris Academy of Sciences to do so in the seventeenth to nineteenth centuries. It employed both astronomers – people who study and measure the stars – and geodesists – people who study and measure the Earth. This book is about what they did and why. It is a true story behind Dan Brown’s fiction. This is the first English language presentation of this historical material. It is attractively written and it features the story of the community of scientists who created the Paris Meridian. They knew each other well – some were members of the same families, in one case of four generations. Like scientists everywhere they collaborated and formed alliances; they also split into warring factions and squabbled. They travelled to foreign countries, somehow transcending the national and political disputes, as scientists do now, their eyes fixed on ideas of accuracy, truth and objective, enduring values – save where the reception given to their own work is concerned, when some became blind to high ideals and descended into petty politics. To establish the Paris Meridian, the scientists endured hardship, survived danger and gloried in amazing adventures during a time of turmoil in Europe, the French Revolution and the Napoleonic War between France and Spain. Some were accused of witchcraft. Some of their associates lost their heads on the guillotine. Some died of disease. Some won honour and fame. One became the Head of State in France, albeit for no more than a few weeks. Some found dangerous love in foreign countries. One scientist killed in self defence when attacked by a jealous lover, another was himself killed by a jealous lover, a third brought back a woman to France and then jilted her, whereupon she joined a convent. The scientists worked on practical problems of interest to the government and to the people. They also worked on one of the important intellectual problems of the time, a problem of great interest to their fellow scientists all over the world, nothing less than the theory of universal gravitation. They succeeded in their intellectual work, while touching politics and the affairs of state. Their endeavours have left their marks on the landscape, in art and in literature.

Perilous Adventures in the Competition to Measure the Earth

Full Meridian of Glory

David Malin

"Colours of the stars uses spectacular photography to shw the coulours of stars, galaxies, and nebulae." -- dust jacket.

Colours of the Stars

Lesley Murdin

Outlines the history of stellar astronomy, summarizes current knowledge concerning supernovas, and describes their link with black holes, pulsars, and the creation of chemical elements

Supernovae

Looks at questions related to how life arose on Earth, whether it might exist on other planets, the forms it might take, and how likely it would be that we might make contact with other intelligent species.

The Search for Life in the Cosmos

Are We Being Watched?

This book relates the history of asteroid discoveries and christenings, from those of the early pioneering giants of Hersehel and Piazzi to modern-day amateurs. Moving from history and anecdotal information to science, the book's structure is provided by the names of the asteroids, including one named after the author. Free from a need to conform to scientific naming conventions, the names evidence hero-worship, sycophancy, avarice, vanity, whimsy, erudition and wit, revealing the human side of astronomers, especially where controversy has followed the christening. Murdin draws from extensive historical records to explore the debate over these names. Each age reveals its own biases and preferences in the naming process. “/p> Originally regarded as “vermin of the skies,” asteroids are minor planets, rocky scraps left over from the formation of the larger planets, or broken fragments of worlds that have collided. Their scientific classification as “minor” planets makes them seem unimportant, but over the past decades asteroids have been acknowledged to be key players in the Solar System. This view of their starring role even alters the trajectories of spacecraft: NASA’s policy for new space missions en route to the outer planets is that they must divert to study passing asteroids whenever possible. This book provides for readers a complete tour of the fascinating world of asteroids.

Paul Murdin

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