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How can shadows determine the date and time of a painting by Johannes Vermeer? How did the Moon and tides cause the loss of King John's crown jewels?In his newest book, Professor Olson, author of Celestial Sleuth and Further Adventures of the Celestial Sleuth, explores how astronomical clues can uncover fascinating new details about art, history, and literature. He begins with an accessible introduction to amateur "e;celestial sleuthing,"e; showing how to use your astronomical knowledge, software, archives, vintage maps, historical letters and diaries, military records, and other resources to investigate the past.Follow along as Professor Olson then explores twenty real-world cases where astronomy has helped answer unresolved questions or correct longstanding interpretations about an event. Examples involve artists such as Vermeer, Monet, and O'Keeffe; the historical exploits of Alexander the Great, the desert travels of the Death Valley '49ers, and a meeting between Franklin D. Roosevelt and Winston Churchill in Marrakech; and literary works by Chaucer, Shakespeare, and Longfellow.Packed with dozens of full-color illustrations, this book will enrich your knowledge of the past and equip you with all the tools you'll need to become a celestial sleuth yourself."e;Many people have a passion for art, or world history, or great literature, or even astronomy - but seldom in all these things at once. This remarkable book by Donald Olson of Texas State University will put you in touch with such seemingly unrelated endeavors. It will open your eyes and broaden your mind as little else could."e;Roger W. Sinnott, Sky & Telescope

"A brilliant study of constellations and culture." - Neil deGrasse TysonIn this book, Boston University Professor of Astronomy Michael Mendillo takes readers deep into the annals of history, showing how visual depictions of the heavens evolved in tandem with science and religion throughout much of Western culture.With unprecedented scope and scale, Professor Mendillo explores how cave art, illuminated manuscripts, sculptures, paintings and architecture reflected some of the great religious and secular battles taking place over the course of centuries. Enter a world of biblical proportions, where constellations of ancient heroes and pagans were thoroughly recast as Christian saints and the Twelve Apostles. This nontechnical narrative brings vitality and accessibility to some of the most enduring subjects in human history, offering a lively new exploration of the visual connections between celestial phenomena and artistic expression."Ever wonder how religion and art became forces of imagination on our night skies? Or how the night skies became forces of imagination on our religion and art? In this brilliant study of constellations and culture, Michael Mendillo, professor of astronomy at Boston University, reveals that the canopy of starshas been an ideologically contested space from the beginning, ensuring that the next time you look up, the sky will look completely different to you."-Neil deGrasse Tyson, Director, Hayden Planetarium,American Museum of Natural History"Saints and Sinners impressionistically reveals the connections of art, astronomy, and religion in Western culture to illuminate the age-old quest for celestial-terrestrial connections." - Roberta J.M. Olson, author of Giotto's Portrait of Halley's Comet and Cosmos: The Art and Science of the Universe "Professor Mendillo's book does a priceless service, opening the doors of our minds to images that will stir us, because the heavens are part of us, and we all long to know how and why." - Rev. David R. Thom, MIT Chaplain and Convener of the Cambridge Faculty Roundtable on Science, Art & Religion"Over a lifetime devoted to astronomical research and teaching, Michael Mendillo has indulged a parallel passion for artistic representations of the heavenly bodies. In this sumptuous volume, he explores the projection of our changing belief systems onto the constant stars." - Dava Sobel, author of Longitude, Galileo's Daughter and The Glass Universe

The story of Hubble and Humason is one for the agesΓÇöand in particular, the Cosmic Age. In this compelling book, science writer Ron Voller digs deep into how and why the two scientists continued to investigate their theory of universal expansion in the face of persistent doubt, contrary theories, and calamitous world events.The evolution of this dynamic duoΓÇÖs tenuous friendship and professional partnership is in many ways as intriguing as their groundbreaking work on the evolution of the universe. The book therefore traces their lives from their childhoods into their burgeoning careers, revealing how a World War and their own personal differences stood in the way of initial cooperation. It then shows how despite all this, the two opposites eventually came together in the pursuit of something far greater than themselves.This grand story is inextricably interwoven with that of Albert Einstein, Willem de Sitter, and other great physicists of the era, all of whom took part in the staggering quest to make sense of the Big Bang and what followed.ΓÇ£Edwin Hubble has often been considered as an island of sortsΓÇöa lone wolf of astronomy. But VollerΓÇÖs book shows otherwise, as he examines Milt HumasonΓÇÖs essential contributions to our understanding of the expanding universe.ΓÇ¥ - Daniel Lewis, Dibner Senior Curator, History of Science & Technology, The Huntington Library

For centuries, our ancestors carefully observed the movements of the heavens and wove that astronomical knowledge into their city planning, architecture, mythology, paintings, sculpture, and poetry.

Explore the beauty and awe of the heavens through the rich celestial prints and star atlases offered in this third edition book.

This book is the first regular annual to review each year's major astronomical discoveries. Its aim (and subsequent volumes issued annually) is to provide an annual astronomy review suitable for the popular science level reader.

This book is the first to provide a comprehensive, readily understandable report on the European Space Agency's Gaia mission that will meet the needs of a general audience.

This book introduces the reader to the wonders of Mars, covering all aspects from our past perceptions of the planet through to the latest knowledge on its history, its surface processes such as impact cratering, volcano formation, and glaciation, and its atmosphere and climate.

Weather archives, vintage maps, tides, historical letters and diaries, military records and the assistance of experts in related fields help with this work.For each historical event influenced by astronomy, there is a different kind of mystery to be solved.

This book explores the mechanics of star formation, the process by which matter pulls together and creates new structures.

Taking inspiration from Siv Cedering's poem in the form of a fictional letter from Caroline Herschel that refers to "my long, lost sisters, forgotten in the books that record our science", this book tells the lives of twenty-five female scientists, with specific attention to astronomers and mathematicians.

This book compiles an array of interesting constellations that fell by the wayside before the IAU established the modern canon of constellations. The 16 constellations found in this volume fall into one or more of three broad categories: asterims, such as the Big Dipper in Ursa Major;

Casual stargazers are familiar with many classical figures and asterisms composed of bright stars (e.g., Orion and the Plough), but this book reveals not just the constellations of today but those of yesteryear. The history of the human identification of constellations among the stars is explored through the stories of some influential celestial cartographers whose works determined whether new inventions survived. The history of how the modern set of 88 constellations was defined by the professional astronomy community is recounted, explaining how the constellations described in the book became permanently “extinct.”  Dr. Barentine addresses why some figures were tried and discarded, and also directs observers to how those figures can still be picked out on a clear night if one knows where to look. These lost constellations are described in great detail using historical references, enabling observers to rediscover them on their own surveys of the sky. Treatment of the obsolete constellations as extant features of the night sky adds a new dimension to stargazing that merges history with the accessibility and immediacy of the night sky.

Other religions could be practiced on distant worlds but nevertheless identify both Earth as a place and humankind as a species of singular spiritual religious importance, while some religions could be practiced equally well anywhere in the universe by any sentient beings.

Specifically traces the impact of Einstein's ideas on astronomy, including the way we interpret observations of stars and galaxies. Presents many applications of relativity that have not been shown in earlier popular-level books and illustrates how deeply physics permeates the way we interpret many astronomical phenomena.

This book explores intriguing cases in which astronomy has been used as a tool to solve mysteries from art, history, and literature. It clearly explains astronomical concepts with non-technical language and defines terms as needed for wide readership.

Follow Monte Ross of the Laser Space Signal Observatory as he explores the challenges in searching for evidence of extraterrestrials, the programs that have failed, and those that continue.

For the experienced amateur astronomer who is wondering if there is something useful, valuable, and permanent that can be done with his or her observational skills, the answer is, "Yes, there is!" This is THE book for the amateur astronomer who is ready to take the next step in his or her astronomical journey.

Conventional star atlases are great for locating constellations and individual stars but The Star Atlas Companion goes one step further and describes the physical properties of more than 1,100 stars.

This volume offers an accessible journey through the Universe in search of water. The author shows how scientists detect water, from the nearest planets to the furthest galaxies. Coverage includes the role played by water in studies of habitable exoplanets.

Stars Above, Earth Below examines a range of astronomical topics in relation to the landscapes, processes and cultures which can be seen and experienced within US National Parks. The geological features readers can see are linked to the very latest NASA spacecraft discoveries on other planets and their moons.

This text discusses a broad range of possible environments where alien life might evolve in our universe. It also uses current knowledge of chemistry, energy and evolutionary tendencies to consider possible life forms ranging from the familiar to the exotic.

Chapters 2 gives details of the early stages of different types of galaxy collision - Rings of Fire, Tidal Swings and Retrograde and Sideways Reels - while Chapter 3 describes collisions between galaxies of very different masses: minor merger or dwarf destruction.

In this illustrated book, Denis Savoie presents the basics of astronomy required to understand sundials and describes how to design and build your own classical sundial. He describes how ancient sundials were used and presents a history of time measurement.

Pulsars are rapidly spinning neutron stars, the collapsed cores of once massive stars that ended their lives as supernova explosions. In this book, Geoff McNamara explores the history, subsequent discovery and contemporary research into pulsar astronomy.

The State of the Universe annuals provide an annual astronomy review suitable for the popular science-level reader. The book also includes web links for all major news stories, providing a bridge between the public news stories and the actual research web sites.

This book gives a new insight of Mars by adopting an original outline based on history rather than on subtopic (atmosphere, surface, interior). It focuses on the past and present evolution of Mars and also incorporates all the recent results from the space missions of Mars Express, Spirit and Opportunity.