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Books > Science & Mathematics > Astronomy, space & time
Europa The Ocean Moon tells the story of the Galileo spacecraft probe to Jupiter's moon, Europa. It provides a detailed description of the physical processes, including the dominating tidal forces that operate on Europa, and includes a comprehensive tour of Europa using images taken by Galileo's camera. The book reviews and evaluates the interpretative work carried out to date, providing a philosophical discussion of the scientific process of analyzing results and the pitfalls that accompany it. It also examines the astrobiological constraints on this possible biosphere, and implications for future research, exploration and planetary biological protection. Europa The Ocean Moon provides a unique understanding of the Galileo images of Europa, discusses the theory of tidal processes that govern its icy ridged and disrupted surface, and examines in detail the physical setting that might sustain extra-terrestrial life in Europa's ocean and icy crust. "
While the number and range of international peace programmes continues to proliferate, there is a marked absence of interdisciplinary and comparative research to guide academic development and inform practice in this challenging arena. It is these deficits that the present volume aims to address. This collection of peace education efforts in conflict and post-conflict societies brings together an international group of scholars to offer the very latest theoretical and pedagogical developments for long term solutions.
Written by an international team of experts, this set of tutorial reviews provides a coherent and accessible summary of the current state of supernova research in all of its facets. The newly detected gamma-ray bursts are discussed in this context. While primarily addressing astrophysicists and astronomers, this book will also be of interest to cosmologists and nuclear physicists working on supernova-related issues.
A fundamental, profound review of the key issues relating to the early universe and the physical processes that occurred in it. The interplay between cosmic microwave background radiation, large scale structure, and the dark matter problem are stressed, with a central focus on the crucial issue of the phase transitions in the early universe and their observable consequences: baryon symmetry, baryogenesis and cosmological fluctuations. There is an interplay between cosmology, statistical physics and particle physics in studying these problems, both at the theoretical and the experimental / observational levels. Special contributions are devoted to primordial and astrophysical black holes and to high energy cosmic rays and neutrino astrophysics. There is also a special section devoted to the International Space Station and its scientific utilization.
Solar Physics publishes up to two Topical Issues per year that focus on areas of especially vigorous and active research. The present Topical Issue contains papers of recent results on the solar corona, as well as on the transition region and low solar wind. The majority of these papers, which were all refereed in accordance with the standards of Solar Physics, were presented in August 1999 at a workshop held in Monterey, California. The authors were offered the opportunity to present relevant parts of their contributions on an accompanying CD ROM of this Topical Issue. The Sun's magnetic field is responsible for the spectacularly dynamic and intri cate phenomenon that we call the corona. The past decade has seen an enormous increase in our understanding of this part of the solar outer atmosphere, both as a result of observations and because of rapid advances in numerical studies. The Yohkoh satellite has observed the Sun now for over eight years, producing spectac ular sequences of images that convey the complexity of the corona. The imaging and spectroscopic instruments on SOHO have added information on the cooler part of the corona. And since April of 1998 TRACE has given us very high resolution images of the 1-2 MK corona, at cadences that allow detailed observations of field oscillations, loop evolution, mass ejecta, etc.
Use of occultation methodology for observing the Earth's atmosphere and climate has become so broad as to comprise solar, lunar, stellar, navigation and satellite crosslink occultation methods. The atmospheric parameters obtained extend from the fundamental variables temperature, density, pressure, water vapor, and ozone via a multitude of trace gas species to particulate species such as aerosols and cloud liquid water. Ionospheric electron density is sensed as well. The methods all share the key properties of self-calibration, high accuracy and vertical resolution, global coverage, and (if using radio signals) all-weather capability. Occultation data are thus of high value in a wide range of fields including climate monitoring and research, atmospheric physics and chemistry, operational meteorology, and other fields such as space weather and planetary science. This wide area of variants and uses of the occultation method has led to a diversi fication of the occultation-related scientific community into a range of different sub-communities, however. The 1st International Workshop on Occultations for Probing Atmosphere and Cli mate-OPAC-1- held September 16-20, 2002, in Graz, Austria, has set in ex actly at this point. OPAC-1 aimed at providing a casual forum and stimulating at mosphere fertilizing scientific discourse, co-operation initiatives, and mutual learning and support amongst members of all the different sub-communities. The workshop was attended by about 80 participants from 17 different countries who actively contributed to a scientific programme of high quality and to an excellent workshop atmosphere, which was judged by the participants to have fully met the aims expressed.
This volume is concerned essentially with the modern developments in reflecting telescope optics. In the last twenty years, modern technology has revolutionized not only manufacturing and test procedures but also the whole area of quality specification with the introduction of active control into the functioning telescope. Other subjects covered here are alignment of telescope optics, atmospheric optics, including adaptive optics, reflecting coatings and ancillary equipment (adapters and baffles). Although an independent work, Vol. II is heavily cross-referenced with Vol. I. It is richly illustrated and gives, together with Vol. I, the most complete list of references available; it can also therefore be regarded as a source book.
The work presented in this book is a major step towards understanding and eventually suppressing background in the direct search for dark matter particles scattering off germanium detectors. Although the flux of cosmic muons is reduced by many orders of magnitude in underground laboratories, the remaining energetic muons induce neutrons through various processes, neutrons that can potentially mimic a dark matter signal. This thesis describes the measurement of muon-induced neutrons over more than 3 years in the Modane underground laboratory. The data are complemented by a thorough modeling of the neutron signal using the GEANT4 simulation package, demonstrating the appropriateness of this tool to model these rare processes. As a result, a precise neutron production yield can be presented. Thus, future underground experiments will be able to reliably model the expected rate of muon-induced neutrons, making it possible to develop the necessary shielding concept to suppress this background component.
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.
In recent years there has been a steadily increasing cross-fertilization between cosmology and particle physics, on both the theoretical and experimental levels. Particle physics has provided new experimental data from the big accelerators in operation, and data from space satellites are accumulating rapidly. Cosmology is still one of the best laboratories for testing particle theory. The present work discusses such matters in the context of inflation, strings, dark matter, neutrinos and gravitational wave physics in the very early universe, field theory at the Planck scale, and high energy physics. A particular emphasis has been placed on a new topology for spatial infinity, on the relation between temperature and gravitational potential, a canonical formulation of general relativity, the neutrino mass, spin in the early universe, the measurement of gravity in the 10--100 m range, galaxy--galaxy and cluster--cluster correlation, black holes, string theory and string/string duality. The work also presents a beautiful review of high energy elementary particle physics, treating the meaning, status and perspectives of unification and standard model gauge couplings.
G. Beutler's Methods of Celestial Mechanics is a coherent textbook for students as well as an excellent reference for practitioners. The first volume gives a thorough treatment of celestial mechanics and presents all the necessary mathematical details that a professional would need. The reader will appreciate the well-written chapters on numerical solution techniques for ordinary differential equations, as well as that on orbit determination. In the second volume applications to the rotation of earth and moon, to artificial earth satellites and to the planetary system are presented. The author addresses all aspects that are of importance in high-tech applications, such as the detailed gravitational fields of all planets and the earth, the oblateness of the earth, the radiation pressure and the atmospheric drag. The concluding part of this monumental treatise explains and details state-of-the-art professional and thoroughly-tested software for celestial mechanics.
This volume presents results from the ESO workshop Multiple Stars across the H-R Diagram, held in Garching in July 2005. It covers observations of multiple stars from ground and space, dynamical and stellar evolution in multiple systems, formation and early evolution of multiple stars, and special components of multiple stars. The book reviews the current state of observational and theoretical knowledge and discusses future studies for further progress in the field.
It was about fourteen years ago that some of us became intrigued with the idea of searching the sky for X-ray and gamma-ray sources other than the Sun, the only celestial emitter of high-energy photons known at that time. It was, of course, clear that an effort in this direction would not have been successful unless there occurred, somewhere in space, processes capable of producing high-energy photons much more efficiently than the processes responsible for the radiative emission of the Sun or of ordinary stars. The possible existence of such processes became the subject of much study and discussion. As an important part of this activity, I wish to recall a one-day conference on X-ray astronomy held at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory in 1960. The theoretical predictions did not provide much encouragement. While several 'unusual' celestial objects were pin-pointed as possible, or even likely, sources of X-rays, it did not look as if any of them would be strong enough to be observable with instru mentation not too far beyond the state of the art. Fortunately, we did not allow our selves to be dissuaded. As far as I am personally concerned, I must admit that my main motivation for pressing forward was a deep-seated faith in the boundless re sourcefulness of nature, which so often leaves the most daring imagination of man far behind."
This book contains a series of lectures given at the NATO Advanced Study Institute (ASI) "Structure Formation in the Universe," held at the Isaac Newton Institute in Cambridge in August, 1999. The ASI was held at a critical juncture in the development of physical cosmology, when a flood of new data concerning the large scale structure of the Universe was just be coming available. There was an air of excitement and anticipation: would the standard theories fit the data, or would new ideas and models be re quired? Cosmology has long been a field of common interest between East and West, with many seminal contributions made by scientists working in the former Soviet Union and Eastern bloc. A major aim of the ASI was to bring together scientists from across the world to discuss exciting recent developments and strengthen links. However, a few months before the meeting it appeared that it might have to be cancelled. The war in the former Yugoslavia escalated and NATO began a protracted bombing cam paign against targets in Kosovo and Serbia. Many scientists felt uneasy about participating in a NATO-funded meeting in this situation. After a great deal of discussion, it was agreed that the developing East West conflict only heightened the need for further communication and that the school should go ahead as planned, but with a special session devoted to discussion of the legitimacy of NATO's actions."
How old is our Universe? At what speed is our Universe expanding? Is our universe flat or curved? How is the hierarchical structure of the present Universe formed? The purpose of IAU Symposium 183 on the Cosmological Parameters and the Evolution of the Universe was to encourage a state-of-the-art discussion and assessment of cosmology by putting together the latest observational data and theoretical ideas on the evolution of the universe and cosmological parameters. In this volume, excellent reviews on these subjects by distinguished scientists are included. The first article by M.S. Longair, Cosmological Parameters and the Evolution of the Universe: Progress and Prospect', is a magnificent general review which can be understood by non-specialists. The other reviews include Hubble Constants (W.L. Freedman, G.A. Tammann), Microwave Background Radiation (R.B. Partridge, N. Sugiyama), Galaxy Formation and Evolution (R.S. Ellis) and Alternative Cosmological Models (J.V. Narlikar). In addition to the reviews, recent observational and theoretical developments by outstanding active scientists are included.
Proceedings of the 85th Symposium on the International Astronomical Union held in Victoria, B.C., Canada, August 27-30, 1979
The idea of having a conference in Padova describing the results obtained by the Galileo spacecraft and the characteristics of the Telescopio Nazionale Galileo began in 1995, when a number of colleagues from both sides of the Atlantic began exchanging suggestions and ideas. Looking at the schedules of the two teams, it was clear that the beginning of January 1997 would be a good time to hold the conference; these dates also luckily coincided with the dates of the memorable discovery of the Medicean moons of Jupiter by Galileo Galilei in Padova in 1610. To emphasize these three elements, the name of the conference was then proposed and accepted by the involved parties: NASA and JPL in the United States, the German space agency DARA, the University of Padova, and the Astronomical Observatory in Padova. I wish to recall a few key dates: In January 1610, Galileo--from his house in Padova--had the first hint of three and then four stars connected to Jupiter. In December 1995, the probe released from the spacecraft entered the atmosphere of Jupiter, and the spacecraft entered orbit about Jupiter. These extraordinary events were followed at JPL by a number of representatives of many institutions and space agencies. In June 1996, the Telescopio Nazionale Galileo was inaugurated by the King of Spain Juan Carlos I, in the presence of Prof. Luigi Berlinguer, Minister of University and Science. These ceremonies occurred as the spacecraft started touring the moon Europa.
The nature of time has haunted humankind through the ages. Some conception of time has always entered into our ideas about mortality and immortality, and permanence and change, so that concepts of time are of fundamental importance in the study of religion, philosophy, literature, history, and mythology. On one aspect or another, the study of time cuts across all disciplines. The International Society for the Study of Time has as its goal the interdisciplinary and comparative study of time. This volume presents selected essays from the 12th triennial conference of the International Society for the Study of Time at Clare College, Cambridge. The essays are clustered around themes that pertain to the constructive and destructive nature of memory in representations and manipulations of time. The volume is divided into three sections Inscribing and Forgetting, Inventing, and Commemoration wherein the authors grapple with the nature of memory as a medium that reflects the passage of time.
Advanced technologies in astronomy at various wavelengths have provided us with high-resolution and high-quality data of the central regions of nearby galaxies and of the Milky Way Galaxy. These data, both for the Galaxy and extragalactic centers, are now quite suitable for detailed comparative study. This IAU symposium was aimed at understanding the general characteristics of dynamics, ISM physics and magnetic fields, activities including inflow and outflow, as well as starburst, in the `galactic centers'. Special attention was also given to several cases for massive black holes in galaxies and the Galaxy, and to understanding the physics of nuclei associated with black holes.
The Symposium on Infrared and Submillimeter Astronomy was held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.A., on June 8-10, 1976, as an activity associated with the Nineteenth Plenary Meeting of the Committee on Space Research (CaSPAR). The Symposium was sponsored jointly by CaSPAR, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) and the International Union of Radio Science CURSI). caSPAR is an interdisciplinary scientific organization, established by the International Council of Scientific Unions in 1958, to, in the words of its charter, "provide the world scientific community with the means whereby it may exploit the possibilities of satellites and space probes of all kinds for scientific purposes and exchange the resulting data on a co operative basis." The purpose of this particular CaSPAR Sympo sium was to present new results in infrared and submillimeter astronomy obtained by observations on aircraft, high altitude balloons, rockets, satellites, and space probes. Topics dis cussed included the Sun, the solar system, galactic and extra galactic objects as well as the cosmic background radiation. Instrumentation for observations in infrared and submillimeter astronomy was also discussed, with particular emphasis on future programs from space observatories."
This book explores cataclysmic variables with and without strong, overpowering magnetic fields. You ll read about stars with densities ranging from that of the Sun to the degenerate matter of white dwarfs to the ultra-compact states of neutron stars and black holes. One of the objects examined and discussed is the Double Pulsar, highlighting what observations have told us about fundamental physics.
Ken Freeman I would like to pick out a few items that I found particularly interesting. The choice probably reflects my ignorance, because many of these topics are no doubt more known to most of you. I am fairly sure that some of them are basic and important. We will start with the first session. There were three closely related papers on the evolution of massive stars, the formation of open clusters and associations and the IMF. We learned that clusters appear to form in initially bound clouds 6 of masses between 10'+_10 M , but star formation is a destructive process. Most of the gas is@ lost and the remaining stars then find themselves in an unbound system, which naturally disperses on a dynamical time. As a result of this, star formation is typically a fairly inefficient process, at least on the scale of open clusters. However (as Heggie pointed out) it seems to be somewhat more efficient on smaller scales, as evidenced by the fairly high incidence of binary stars. To form a bound cluster requires a higher efficiency of star formation, typically 30% or more, and we see how the three papers of this morning session relate: the initial mass function and the timing of where and when the DB stars form dictate the likely fate of the system.
This volume presents an analysis of the historical background, current status, and future development of space law by noted legal scholars. It focuses on a distinct and growing field of international law that incorporates both public and private law. Specific areas covered are scientific and technical aspects of space and space law; the United Nations and other institutional arrangements; national regulatory aspects; satellite applications; commercialization; dispute settlement; and case law. Since the establishment of a special law-making body at the United Nations in 1958, there has been a steady expansion of laws and regulations pertaining to space activities. The result has been the development of a distinct and mature discipline of international law. This analysis of space law by recognized experts in the field will interest scholars, practitioners, and policy-makers involved in the regulation of space use and exploration. |
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