Books With an Emphasis on the History of Astronomy
Blind Watchers of the Sky, The People and Ideas that Shaped Our View
of the Universe, Rocky Kolb, Addison Wesley 1996
A rather light weight treatment of the history of astronomy and our
understanding of the universe. Sort of a tour of astronomy from Tycho
to the big bang.
Skywatchers, Shamans and Kings, E. C. Krupp, Wiley 1997
The influence of astronomy on archaeology, or perhaps vice versa. Interesting
light reading.
In Search of Planet Vulcan - The Ghost in Newton's Clockwork Universe,
Baum and Sheean, Plenum Trade 1997
This is a nice little book and an easy read about the search for a
planet supposedly causing perturbations of Mercury's orbit. Even
though we know the result, it is a nicely detailed account of the predictions
of Le Verrier and the attempt by his followers to find this elusive planet.
The hundred year search is a study in personalities, factions, fabrication
and stubborn refusal to give up the futile search. There is a large
section on W. Watson an astronomer with connections to the Universities
of Michigan and Wisconsin who was a diligent searcher for Vulcan..
Pluto and Charon, Alan Stern and Jacqueline Mitton, Wiley Interscience
1998
This is a delightful book. It gives a history of the discovery
of both Pluto and Charon, a very detailed and scientific discussion of
analyzing the size and atmosphere of these objects and a nice discussion
of the formation of the planets and our solar system. This
is a readable book but has solid science underlying it.
Starseekers, Colin Wilson, Doubleday and Company 1980. This is a history of mankind and his looking to the stars. Starts with Stonehenge and ends with a whimper sometime in this century. A so so book that adds very little to our understanding of the history of astronomical activities.
The Astronomers, Companion book to the PBS television series.
Donald Goldsmith, St. Martin's Press 1991.
This is a book that defies being categorized. It goes with the
television series. That's it. It's ok if you like the series.
Greenwich Time and the Longitude, Derek Howse, Philip Wilson
Publishers 1997
This is a delightful book for anyone interested in the establishment
of time over the centuries. The emphasis is on the Greenwich observatory
and their roll in setting time standards over the world. The chronicle
covers time measurement from the hourglass to the cesium clock. It
is loaded with information about the technology of time measurements and
the lives of the people who improved the measurement of time over the past
several centuries. This is a very nice book.
The End of the Dinosaurs, Charles Frankel, Cambridge University
Press 1999. This in small but chock full of information book about
the latest theories of how the dinosaurs vanished. It establishes
ties between many known major impact craters on the earth's surface with
major changes in the earth's development. Major astronomical catastrophes
seem to have caused major catastrophic steps in the development of the
flora and fauna of the earth over the past 500 million years. A fascinating
book, well written, authoritative and easy to read. Highly recommended.