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Books > Science & Mathematics > Astronomy, space & time
Written by active research scientists who study the volcanism of Earth and of other planets, the contributions provide the first general review of volcanic activity throughout the Solar System. Successive chapters describe past and present volcanic activity as it is observed throughout the Solar System. These chapters relate to readers not only our present knowledge of volcanism throughout the Solar System but also how frontline scientists working in this field conduct their research.
Many new tests of gravity and, in particular, of Einstein's general relativity theory will be carried out in the near future: The Lense--Thirring effect and the equivalence principle will be tested in space; moreover, gravitational waves will be detected, and new atomic interferometers and clocks will be built for measurements in gravitational and inertial fields. New high-precision devices have made these experiments feasible. They will contribute to a better understanding of gravitational physics. Both experimental developments and the theoretical concepts are collected in this volume. Exhaustive reviews give an overall insight into the subject of experimental gravitation.
1. 1. Short History of Solar Radio Astronomy Since its birth in the forties of our century, solar radio astronomy has grown into an extensive scientific branch comprising a number of quite different topics covering technical sciences, astrophysics, plasma physics, solar-terrestrial physics, and other disciplines. Historically, the story of radio astronomy goes back to the times of James Clerk Maxwell, whose well known phenomenological electromagnetic field equations have become the basis of present-time radio physics. As a direct consequence of these equations, Maxwell was able to prognosticate the existence of radio waves which fifteen years later were experimentally detected by the famous work of Heinrich Hertz (1887/88). However, all attempts to detect radio waves from cosmic objects failed until 1932, which was mainly due to the early stage of development of receiving techniques and the as yet missing knowledge of the existence of a screening ionosphere (which was detected in 1925). Therefore, famous inventors like Thomas Edison and A. E. Kennelly, as well as Sir Oliver Lodge, were unsuccessful in receiving any radio emission from the Sun or other extraterrestrial sources. Another hindering point was that nobody could a priori expect that solar radio emission should have something to do with solar activity so that unfortunately by chance some experiments were carried out just at periods of low solar activity. This was also why Karl Guthe Jansky at the birth of radio astronomy detected galactic radio waves but no emission from the Sun.
Celestial fundamental catalogues are a prerequisite for the determination of absolute positions and motions in space. Presently, positional astrometry is at the watershed between classical fundamental catalogues, based on moving reference stars, and modern catalogues, based on extragalactic reference objects with non-measurable motion. This book addresses the concepts and methods of the respective construction techniques leading to the stellar frame of the FK5 (fifth fundamental catalogue) and to the newly adopted extragalactic radio reference frame, ICRF (international celestial reference frame), with its extension to optical wavelengths by the Hipparcos Catalogue. While principal outlines of meridian circle observations are given, emphasis is put in some detail on the VLBI technique as applied to astrometry, and to the observational techniques used in the Hipparcos mission, including the tie of the originally non-anchored rigid Hipparcos sphere into the ICRF.
IAU Transactions are published as a volume corresponding to each General Assembly. Volume A is produced prior to the Assembly and contains Reports on Astronomy, prepared by each Commission President. The intention is to summarize the astronomical results that have affected the work of the Commission since the production of the previous Reports up to a time which is about one year prior to the General Assembly. Volume B is produced after the Assembly and contains accounts of Commission Meetings which were held, together with other material. The reports included in the present volume range from outline summaries to lengthy compilations and references. Most reports are in English.
The book presents the most recent developments of laboratory studies in astrophysics and space research. The individual chapters review laboratory investigations under simulated space conditions, studies for the design of successful space experiments or for supporting the interpretation of astronomical and space mission recorded data. Related theoretical models, numerical simulations and in situ observations demonstrate the necessity of experimental work on the Earth's surface. The expertise of the contributing scientists covers a broad spectrum and is included in general overviews from fundamental science to recent space technology. The book intends to serve as a reference for researchers and graduate students on the most recent activities and results in laboratory astrophysics, and to give reviews of their applications in astronomy, planetology, cosmochemistry, space research and Solar System exploration.
Space debris and asteroid impacts pose a very real, very near-term threat to Earth. In order to help study and mitigate these risks, the Stardust program was formed in 2013. This training and research network was devoted to developing and mastering techniques such as removal, deflection, exploitation, and tracking. This book is a collection of many of the topics addressed at the Final Stardust Conference, describing the latest in asteroid monitoring and how engineering efforts can help us reduce space debris. It is a selection of studies bringing together specialists from universities, research institutions, and industry, tasked with the mission of pushing the boundaries of space research with innovative ideas and visionary concepts. Topics covered by the Symposium: Orbital and Attitude Dynamics Modeling Long Term Orbit and Attitude Evolution Particle Cloud Modeling and Simulation Collision and Impact Modelling and Simulation, Re-entry Modeling and Simulation Asteroid Origins and Characterization Orbit and Attitude Determination Impact Prediction and Risk Analysis, Mission Analysis-Proximity Operations, Active Removal/Deflection Control Under Uncertainty, Active Removal/Deflection Technologies, and Asteroid Manipulation
Astrophysics: Anomalous Redshift Question: Empirical Evidence on the Creation of Galaxies and Quasars (H. Arp). Periodicity in Extragalactic Redshifts (W.M. Napier). Quasar Spectra: Black Holes or Nonstandard Models? (J.W. Sulentic). Relativity: Problems of Energy and of Ether: Fourdimensional Elasticity: Is It General Relativity? (A. Tartaglia). Universality of the Lie-Isotopic Symmetries for Deformed Minkowskian Metrics (A.K. Aringazin, K.M. Aringazin). From Relativistic Paradoxes to Absolute Space and Time Physics (H.E. Wilhelm). Geophysics: Expanding Earth: Earth Complexity vs. Plate Tectonic Simplicity (G. Scalera). An Evolutionary Earth Expansion Hypothesis (S.T. Tassos). Fields and Particles: Space-Time Structures: Electromagnetic Interactions and Particle Physics (A.O. Barut). Isotopic and Genotopic Relativistic Theory (A. Jannussis, A. Sotiropoulou). Quantum Physics: Duality and Locality: A New Logic for Quantum Mechanics? (E. Bitsakis). Classical Interpretation of Quantum Mechanics (V.K. Ignatovich). 62 additional articles. Index.
The 2005 meeting in Taormina, Italy was attended by 127 professionals who develop and use the highest quality detectors for wavelengths from x-ray to sub-mm, with emphasis on optical and infrared detectors. The meeting consisted of overview talks, technical presentations, poster sessions and roundtable discussions. These proceedings capture the technical content and the spirit of the 2005 workshop. The 87 papers cover a wide range of detector technologies including CCDs, CMOS, APDs, and sub-mm detectors. There are papers on observatory status and plans, special applications, detector testing and characterization, and electronics. A special feature of these proceedings is the inclusion of pedagogical overview papers, which were written by teams of leading experts from different institutions. These proceedings are appropriate for a range of expertise levels, from undergraduates to professionals working in the field. The information presented in this book will serve as a valuable reference for many years to come. This workshop was organized by the Scientific Workshop Factory, Inc. and the INAF- Osservatorio Astrofisico di Catania.
This volume contains five articles describing the mission and its instruments. The first paper, by the project scientist Richard C. Elphic and his colleagues, describes the mission objectives, the launch vehicle, spacecraft and the mission itself. This is followed by a description of LADEE's Neutral Mass Spectrometer by Paul Mahaffy and company. This paper describes the investigation that directly targets the lunar exosphere, which can also be explored optically in the ultraviolet. In the following article Anthony Colaprete describes LADEE's Ultraviolet and Visible Spectrometer that operated from 230 nm to 810 nm scanning the atmosphere just above the surface. Not only is there atmosphere but there is also dust that putatively can be levitated above the surface, possibly by electric fields on the Moon's surface. Mihaly Horanyi leads this investigation, called the Lunar Dust Experiment, aimed at understanding the purported observations of levitated dust. This experiment was also very successful, but in this case their discovery was not the electrostatic levitation of dust, but that the dust was raised by meteoroid impacts. This is not what had been expected but clearly is the explanation that best fits the data. Originally published in Space Science Reviews, Volume 185, Issue 1-4, 2014.
New Horizons: Reconnaissance of the Pluto-Charon System and the Kuiper Belt C. T. Russell Originally published in the journal Space Science Reviews, Volume 140, Nos 1-4, 1-2. DOI: 10. 1007/s11214-008-9450-0 (c) Springer Science+Business Media B. V. 2008 Exploration is mankind's imperative. Since the beginnings of civilization, men and women have not been content to build a wall around their settlements and stay within its con nes. They explored the land around them, climbed the mountains, and scanned the horizons. The boldest among them pushed exploration to the most distant frontiers of the planet. As a result, much of the Earth was inhabited well before the days of the renowned European - th th plorers of the 15 and 16 centuries. Exploration did not cease, after the circumnavigation of the globe; it continued to the present. Today explorers are going in new directions, not just east and west, north and south. They explore backward in time and upward in space. Arc- ology explores the shorter time scales, and geochemistry the longer time scales of geophy- cal events: asteroidal and cometary collisions, magnetic reversals, continental formation and more. However, on Earth we cannot go back inde nitely, for much of the evidence of the very earliest days has been lost.
This volume is the documentation of the first Course on 'Neutron Stars, Active Galactic Nuclei and Jets', of an Erice School with a wide astro physical scope. The choice of the subject was made because of an apparent similari ty - stressed already at earlier meetings - of four classes of astrophy sical jet sources: Active Galactic Nuclei, Young Stellar Objects, Binary Neutron Stars and Binary White Dwarfs. They share important properties such as their morphology, high variability and large veloci ty gradients as well as - with some inference - their broad spectrum, hypersonic outflow and core/lobe power ratio. Despite this apparent similarity of the four source classes, quite different models have been put forward for their description: (i) The central engine of active galactic nuclei has been generally thought to be a black hole, in contrast to the central engine of young stellar objects and cometary nebulae which apparently is a pre-T-Tauri star, some six orders of magnitude less compact, and to the central engine of planetary nebulae which mayor may not be a binary white dwarf. (ii) The elongated lobes, or flow patterns, have been often interpreted as highly directional stellar wind outflows whereas in a few well mapped cases, the elongated flow appears to be 'pumped up' through a much narrower channel, or jet, both in the extragalactic and stellar sources."
The Finnish mathematician and astronomer Anders Johan Lexell (1740-1784) was a long-time close collaborator as well as the academic successor of Leonhard Euler at the Imperial Academy of Sciences in Saint Petersburg. Lexell was initially invited by Euler from his native town of Abo (Turku) in Finland to Saint Petersburg to assist in the mathematical processing of the astronomical data of the forthcoming transit of Venus of 1769. A few years later he became an ordinary member of the Academy. This is the first-ever full-length biography devoted to Lexell and his prolific scientific output. His rich correspondence especially from his grand tour to Germany, France and England reveals him as a lucid observer of the intellectual landscape of enlightened Europe. In the skies, a comet, a minor planet and a crater on the Moon named after Lexell also perpetuate his memory.
This book is an original study aimed at understanding how vacuum magnetic fields change with time. Specifically, it describes the waves that radiate from a sphere when the electric current on its surface is turned on or off, either suddenly, gradually, or periodically. Numerical simulations are an invaluable source of information about this and related subjects, but they are often more difficult to interpret than exact, closed-form solutions that can easily be applied to a variety of situations. Thus, the objective here is to obtain an exact solution of Maxwell's equations in closed form-something simple, yet rigorous, which can be used as a model for understanding transient magnetic fields in more complicated situations. The work therefore stands as a self-contained solution of Maxwell's equations for an electric current wrapped around the surface of a sphere. This study assumes a strong background in electromagnetism or a related research area. Online animations are available for each figure to better illustrate the motions of magnetic field lines.
This book is a historical-epistemological study of one of the most consequential breakthroughs in the history of celestial mechanics: Robert Hooke's (1635-1703) proposal to "compoun[d] the celestial motions of the planets of a direct motion by the tangent & an attractive motion towards a centrat body" (Newton, The Correspondence li, 297. Henceforth: Correspondence). This is the challenge Hooke presented to Isaac Newton (1642-1727) in a short but intense correspondence in the winter of 1679-80, which set Newton on course for his 1687 Principia, transforming the very concept of "the planetary heavens" in the process (Herivel, 301: De Motu, Version III). 1 It is difficult to overstate the novelty of Hooke 's Programme * The celestial motions, it suggested, those proverbial symbols of stability and immutability, werein fact a process of continuous change: a deflection of the planets from original rectilinear paths by "a centraU attractive power" (Correspondence, li, 313). There was nothing necessary or essential in the shape of planetary orbits. Already known to be "not circular nor concentricall" (ibid. ), Hooke claimed that these apparently closed "curve Line[ s ]" should be understood and calculated as mere effects of rectilinear motions and rectilinear attraction. And as Newton was quick to realize, this also implied that "the planets neither move exactly in ellipse nor revolve twice in the same orbit, so that there are as many orbits to a planet as it has revolutions" (Herivel, 301: De Motu, Version III).
This book represents Volume II of the Proceedings of the UN/ESA/NASA Workshop on the International Heliophysical Year 2007 and Basic Space Science, hosted by the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan, Tokyo, 18 - 22 June, 2007. It covers two programme topics explored in this and past workshops of this nature: (i) non-extensive statistical mechanics as applicable to astrophysics, addressing q-distribution, fractional reaction and diffusion, and the reaction coefficient, as well as the Mittag-Leffler function and (ii) the TRIPOD concept, developed for astronomical telescope facilities. The companion publication, Volume I of the proceedings of this workshop, is a special issue in the journal Earth, Moon, and Planets, Volume 104, Numbers 1-4, April 2009.
9 MHDTurbulence in the Heliosphere: Evolution and Intermittency 253 Bruno Bavassano, Roberto Bruno and Vincenzo Carbone 1 Introduction 254 2 MHD Turbulence Evolution 255 2. 1 Ecliptic Turbulence 256 2. 2 Polar Turbulence 258 2. 3 Conclusions on Turbulence Evolution 263 3 Intermittency 264 3. 1 Probability Distribution Functions of Fluctuations and Self-similarity 269 3. 2 Radial Evolution of Intermittency 271 3. 3 Identifying Intermittent Events 273 3. 4 Conclusions on Intermittency 277 10 283 Waves and Turbulence in the Solar Corona Eckart Marsch 1 Introduction 284 2 Coronal Magnetic Field Structures 284 3 Magnetic Network Activity and Coronal Heating 287 4 Waves and Flows in Loops and Funnels 290 5 Magnetohydrodynamic Waves and Flux Tube Oscillations 293 5. 1 Observation and Theory 293 5. 2 Oscillations of Thin Flux Tubes 295 5. 3 Wave Amplitudes Versus Height from Numerical Mod- ~ 2~ 5. 4 A Standing Slow Magnetoacoustic Wave 299 6 Plasma Waves and Heating of Particles 301 7 Generation, Transfer and Dissipation of Coronal Turbulence 303 7. 1 Generation of Magnetohydrodynamic Waves 303 7. 2 Wave Energy Transfer and Turbulent Cascade 304 7. 3 Wave Dissipation in the Kinetic Domain 307 7. 4 Origin and Generation of Coronal High-Frequency Waves 308 7.
The IAU Symposium No. 62, 'The Stability of the Solar System and of Small Stellar Systems' was held in Warsaw in Poland during the Extraordinary General Assembly of the IAU in commemoration of the SOOth anniversary of the birth of Nicolaus Copernicus. The Symposium was sponsored by Commission 7 (Celestial Mechanics) and cosponsored by Commissions 4 (Ephemerides) and 37 (Star Clusters and Asso- ciations) of the IAU and by IUTAM. The Organizing Committee included Y. Kozai (Chairman), J. A. Agekjan, A. Deprit, G. N. Duboshin, S. G\lska (Local represen- tative), M. Henon, B. Morando and C. Parkes (IUTAM representative). The Symposium was supported financially by the IA U, the IUT AM and the Polish Academy of Sciences. Y. KOZAI Chairman of the Organizing Committee STABILITY THEORY IN CELESTIAL MECHANICS J MOSER Courant Institute of Mathematical ScIences, New York University, New York, N. Y. 10012, U.S.A. Abstract, This expository lecture surveys recent progress of the stability theory in Celestial Mechanics with emphasis on the analytical problems. In particular, the old question of convergence of perturbation series are discussed and positive results obtained, in the light of the work by Kolmogorov Arnold and Moser. For the three body problem, classes of quasi-periodic solutions and doubly asymptotic (or homo- clinic) orbits are discussed.
Professor Brian Cox is back with another insightful and mind-blowing exploration of space. This time he shows us our universe as we've never seen it before. 13.7 billion years old. 93 billion light years wide. It contains over 100 billion galaxies, each containing hundreds of billions of stars. This infinite, vast and complex Universe has been the subject of human fascination and scientific exploration for thousands of years. The wonders of the Universe might seem alien to us and impossible to understand, but away from the telescopes, the labs and the white coats, Professor Brian Cox uses the evidence found in the natural world around us to explain its simple truths. The same laws of light, gravity, time, matter and energy that govern us here on Earth are the same as those applied in the Universe. Using 3D CGI imagery, his expert knowledge and his infectious enthusiasm, Professor Cox shows us that if we can understand the impact of these governing laws on Earth it will bring us a step closer to an understanding of our Universe.
This collection of essays on cultural astronomy celebrates the life and work of Clive Ruggles, Emeritus Professor of Archaeoastronomy at Leicester University. Taking their lead from Ruggles' work, the papers present new research focused on three core themes in cultural astronomy: methodology, case studies, and heritage. Through this framework, they show how the study of cultural astronomy has evolved over time and share new ideas to continue advancing the field. Ruggles' work in these areas has had a profound impact on the way that scholars approach evidence of the role of sky in both ancient and modern cultures. While the papers span many time periods and regions, they are closely connected by these three major themes, presenting methodological investigations of how we can approach archaeological, textual, and ethnographic evidence; describing detailed archaeoastronomical case studies; or stressing the importance of global heritage management. This work will appeal to researchers and scholars interested in the history and development of cultural astronomy.
The first biography of a pioneering scientist who made significant contributions to our understanding of dark matter and championed the advancement of women in science. One of the great lingering mysteries of the universe is dark matter. Scientists are not sure what it is, but most believe it's out there, and in abundance. The astronomer who finally convinced many of them was Vera Rubin. When Rubin died in 2016, she was regarded as one of the most influential astronomers of her era. Her research on the rotation of spiral galaxies was groundbreaking, and her observations contributed significantly to the confirmation of dark matter, a most notable achievement. In Vera Rubin: A Life, prolific science writers Jacqueline Mitton and Simon Mitton provide a detailed, accessible overview of Rubin's work, showing how she leveraged immense curiosity, profound intelligence, and novel technologies to help transform our understanding of the cosmos. But Rubin's impact was not limited to her contributions to scientific knowledge. She also helped to transform scientific practice by promoting the careers of women researchers. Not content to be an inspiration, Rubin was a mentor and a champion. She advocated for hiring women faculty, inviting women speakers to major conferences, and honoring women with awards that were historically the exclusive province of men. Rubin's papers and correspondence yield vivid insights into her life and work, as she faced down gender discrimination and met the demands of family and research throughout a long and influential career. Deftly written, with both scientific experts and general readers in mind, Vera Rubin is a portrait of a woman with insatiable curiosity about the universe who never stopped asking questions and encouraging other women to do the same.
Throughout history people have sought ways in which to map the heavens. From the sources of mathematics and mythology sprang the classic star chart, the finest examples of which are both scientific documents and works of art. In this beautifully illustrated book, Peter Whitfield reveals some of the ways in which the structure of the universe has been conceived, explained and depicted. With examples ranging from the Stone Age to the Space Age - ancient observatories, the angelic visions of Dante, images from the Copernican revolution, the rationalized heavens of Isaac Newton, and modern deep space technology - Whitfield offers a challenging exploration of the tension between rigorous scientific knowledge and the continuing search for cause, certainty and harmony in the universe. This new edition is updated to include a wider range of stunning maps of the skies in full colour, including imagery from the latest voyages of space exploration.
The theory of stellar atmospheres is one of the most important branches of modern astrophysics. It is first of all a major tool for understanding all aspects of stars. As the physical properties of their outer layers can now be found with high precision, firm conclusions can be drawn about the internal structure and evolution of stars. Moreover, improvements in our knowledge of the chemical composition of stars is shedding new light on the chemical evolution of galaxies and of the Universe as a whole. Because the outer layers of stars are among the best-understood astrophysical objects, the theory of stellar atmospheres plays an important role in the study of many other types of objects. These include planetary nebulae, H II regions, interstellar matter, and objects of interest in high-energy astrophysics, such as accretion disks (close binaries, dwarf novae, cataclysmic variables, quasars, active galactic nuclei), pulsar magnetospheres, and Seyfert galaxies. Finally, as stars provide a laboratory in which plasmas can be studied under more extreme conditions than on earth, the study of stellar atmospheres has strong connections with modern physics. Astronomical observations provided a vital stimulus in the early stages of quantum theory and atomic physics; even today topics such as low-temperature dielectronic recombination develop hand in hand with the interpretation of stellar and nebular spectra. Early work on MHD was similiarly motivated. Many such connections remain to be explored. |
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