'This is an interesting and bittersweet biography. Elizabeth Alexander was a capable and energetic scientist, but circumstances meant that she was never able to settle down and develop her scientific career. The three years she spent in charge of the Operational Research Section of the Radar Development Laboratory in New Zealand was the only time that Elizabeth held a position of responsibility, and is a clear indication that, had she lived 50 years later, she would have been an effective science leader ... The book outlines the career of a remarkable scientist, and is a significant contribution to the history of several different areas of science. 'Scoop Review of BooksMany women scientists, particularly those who did crucial work in two world wars, have disappeared from history. Until they are written back in, the history of science will continue to remain unbalanced. This book tells the story of Elizabeth Alexander, a pioneering scientist who changed thinking in geology and radio astronomy during WWII and its aftermath.Building on an unpublished diary, recently declassified government records and archive material adding considerably to knowledge about radar developments in the Pacific in WWII, this book also contextualises Elizabeth's academic life in Singapore before the war, and the country's educational and physical reconstruction after it as it moved towards independence.This unique story is a must-read for readers interested in scientific, social and military history during the WWII, historians of geology, radar, as well as scientific biographies.Related Link(s)

The discovery of a gradual acceleration in the moon's mean motion by Edmond Halley in the last decade of the seventeenth century led to a revival of interest in reports of astronomical observations from antiquity. These observations provided the only means to study the moon's 'secular acceleration', as this newly-discovered acceleration became known. This book contains the first detailed study of the use of ancient and medieval astronomical observations in order to investigate the moon's secular acceleration from its discovery by Halley to the establishment of the magnitude of the acceleration by Richard Dunthorne, Tobias Mayer and Jerome Lalande in the 1740s and 1750s. Making extensive use of previously unstudied manuscripts, this work shows how different astronomers used the same small body of preserved ancient observations in different ways in their work on the secular acceleration. In addition, this work looks at the wider context of the study of the moon's secular acceleration, including its use in debates of biblical chronology, whether the heavens were made up of aether, and the use of astronomy in determining geographical longitude. It also discusses wider issues of the perceptions and knowledge of ancient and medieval astronomy in the early-modern period. This book will be of interest to historians of astronomy, astronomers and historians of the ancient world."

This book summarizes the science to be carried out by the upcoming Cherenkov Telescope Array, a major ground-based gamma-ray observatory that will be constructed over the next six to eight years. The major scientific themes, as well as core program of key science projects, have been developed by the CTA Consortium, a collaboration of scientists from many institutions worldwide.CTA will be the major facility in high-energy and very high-energy photon astronomy over the next decade and beyond. CTA will have capabilities well beyond past and present observatories. Thus, CTA's science program is expected to be rich and broad and will complement other major multiwavelength and multimessenger facilities. This book is intended to be the primary resource for the science case for CTA and it thus will be of great interest to the broader physics and astronomy communities. The electronic version (e-book) is available in open access.

Ground- or space-based telescopes are becoming increasingly more complex and construction budgets are typically in the billion dollar range. Facing costs of this magnitude, availability of engineering tools for prediction of performance and design optimization is imperative. Establishment of simulation models combining different technical disciplines such as Structural Dynamics, Control Engineering, Optics and Thermal Engineering is indispensable. Such models are normally called Integrated Models because they involve many different disciplines. The models will play an increasingly larger role for design of future interdisciplinary optical systems in space or on ground. The book concentrates on integrated modeling of optical and radio telescopes but the techniques presented will be applicable to a large variety of systems. Hence, the book will be of interest to optical and radio telescope designers, designers of spacecrafts that include optical systems, and to designers of various complex defense systems. The book may also find use as a textbook for undergraduate and graduate courses within the field. "Adaptive Optics" is an exciting and relatively new field, originally dedicated to correction for blurring when imaging through the atmosphere. Although this objective is still of high importance, the concept of Adaptive Optics has recently evolved further. Today, the objective is not only to correct for atmospheric turbulence effects but also for a range of static and dynamical telescope aberrations. The notion of adaptive optics has expanded to the field of "Wavefront Control", correcting for a variety of system aberrations. Wavefront control systems maintain form and position of optical elements with high precision under static and dynamical load. In many ways, such systems replace the steel structures of traditional optical systems, thereby providing much lighter systems with a performance not possible before. Integrated Modeling is the foremost tool for studies of Wavefront Control for telescopes and complex optics and is therefore now of high importance. Springer has recently published two books on telescopes, "Reflecting Telescope Optics" by R. Wilson, and "The Design and Construction of Large Optical Telescopes" by P. Bely. Noting that a new (and expensive) generation of Extremely Large Telescopes with apertures in the 30-100 m range is on the way, the present book on integrated modeling is a good match to the existing books and an appropriate specialization and continuation of some subjects dealt with in those books.

See the full beauty of our night sky revealed as never before in over 200 photographs from around the world in this stunning and giftable title. Bringing together the images of over 40 photographers across 25 countries, be astounded by the lights of the night sky in some of the darkest places on earth; discover the beauty of galaxies, planets and stars; view great celestial events; and see some of the world's most important landmarks against the backdrop of an incredible nightscape. Babak Tafreshi, founder of the international organisation The World at Night, has curated the images in this collection - many of them previously unseen - to reveal the true splendour of the sky at night. A specialist guide to night-sky photography will help you capture your own gorgeous images of the heavens. Commentary on the science, astronomy and photography accompany stunning images organised by theme: Symbols of all nations and religions embraced by one sky of endless beauties UNESCO World Heritage Sites at night The Universe revealed through constellations, sky motions, atmospheric phenomenon, Aurora and other wonders Images highlighting the beauty of dark skies away from light-polluted urban areas Celestial events, from great comets to spectacular eclipses Astro-tourism destinations, like ancient astronomical monuments and modern observatories

Distant galaxies encapsulate the various stages of galaxy evolution and formation from over 95% of the development of the universe. As early as twenty-five years ago, little was known about them, however since the first systematic survey was completed in the 1990s, increasing amounts of resources have been devoted to their discovery and research. This book summarises for the first time the numerous techniques used for observing, analysing, and understanding the evolution and formation of these distant galaxies.In this rapidly expanding research field, this text is an every-day companion handbook for graduate students and active researchers. It provides guidelines in sample selection, imaging, integrated spectroscopy and 3D spectroscopy, which help to avoid the numerous pitfalls of observational and analysis techniques in use in extragalactic astronomy. It also paves the way for establishing relations between fundamental properties of distant galaxies. At each step, the reader is assisted with numerous practical examples and ready-to-use methodology to help understand and analyse research.Francois Hammer worked initially in general relativity and made the first modelling of gravitational lenses prior to their spectroscopic confirmation. Following this, he became co-leader of the first complete survey of distant galaxies, the Canada-France-Redshift Survey. This led to the discovery of the strong decrease of the cosmic star formation density measured from UV light as z=1, which, alongside Hector Flores, they confirmed as bolometric and dust independent. With Mathieu Puech, they then pioneered the 3D spectroscopy of distant galaxies, leading to a major increase of understanding of the dynamic state of distant galaxies evidenced by the scatter of the Tully-Fisher relation. This led them to propose, with the addition to the team of Myriam Rodrigues, that galactic disks may survive or be rebuilt in gas-rich mergers, a scenario that is consistent with contemporary cosmological simulations. Besides extensive observational experience, the authors have led, or are leading, several instruments implemented or to be implemented at the largest telescopes, including VLT/Giraffe, VLT/X-shooter, VLT/MOONS and E-ELT/MOSAIC. They have also developed several observational techniques in adaptive optics, and in sky subtraction for integral field units and fibre instruments.

Distant galaxies encapsulate the various stages of galaxy evolution and formation from over 95% of the development of the universe. As early as twenty-five years ago, little was known about them, however since the first systematic survey was completed in the 1990s, increasing amounts of resources have been devoted to their discovery and research. This book summarises for the first time the numerous techniques used for observing, analysing, and understanding the evolution and formation of these distant galaxies.In this rapidly expanding research field, this text is an every-day companion handbook for graduate students and active researchers. It provides guidelines in sample selection, imaging, integrated spectroscopy and 3D spectroscopy, which help to avoid the numerous pitfalls of observational and analysis techniques in use in extragalactic astronomy. It also paves the way for establishing relations between fundamental properties of distant galaxies. At each step, the reader is assisted with numerous practical examples and ready-to-use methodology to help understand and analyse research.Francois Hammer worked initially in general relativity and made the first modelling of gravitational lenses prior to their spectroscopic confirmation. Following this, he became co-leader of the first complete survey of distant galaxies, the Canada-France-Redshift Survey. This led to the discovery of the strong decrease of the cosmic star formation density measured from UV light as z=1, which, alongside Hector Flores, they confirmed as bolometric and dust independent. With Mathieu Puech, they then pioneered the 3D spectroscopy of distant galaxies, leading to a major increase of understanding of the dynamic state of distant galaxies evidenced by the scatter of the Tully-Fisher relation. This led them to propose, with the addition to the team of Myriam Rodrigues, that galactic disks may survive or be rebuilt in gas-rich mergers, a scenario that is consistent with contemporary cosmological simulations. Besides extensive observational experience, the authors have led, or are leading, several instruments implemented or to be implemented at the largest telescopes, including VLT/Giraffe, VLT/X-shooter, VLT/MOONS and E-ELT/MOSAIC. They have also developed several observational techniques in adaptive optics, and in sky subtraction for integral field units and fibre instruments.

An almost complete collection of the papers given at the International Workshop on Imaging in High Energy Astronomy (Anacapri, Italy, 1994). These proceedings, which concentrate on imaging above 10 keV, represent the state of the art in the field, resulting from the success of many missions (I.C. Granat and CGRO) carrying detectors for high energy astronomy with imaging capabilities. The main topics of the book are Bragg concentrators, coded mask-modulation collimators, double Compton telescopes, the occultation method, tracking chambers, and new experimental techniques. The book also contains some papers dealing with image reconstruction and processing, with an emphasis on the above techniques.

Astronomy was a popular and important part of Victorian science, and British astronomers carried telescopes and spectroscopes to remote areas of India, the Great Plains of North America, and islands in the Caribbean and Pacific to watch the sun eclipsed by the moon. Examining the rich interplay between science, culture, and British imperial society in the late nineteenth century, this book shows how the organization and conduct of scientific fieldwork was structured by contemporary politics and culture, and how rapid and profound changes in the organization of science, advances in photography, and new printing technology remade the character of scientific observation.
After introducing the field of Victorian science to the nonspecialist, the book examines the long periods of planning necessary for eclipse expeditions, and it recounts the day-to-day work of getting to field sites, setting up camp, and preparing for and observing eclipses. Operating behind the countless decisions made by scientists was a host of large-scale forces, including the professionalization and specialization of disciplines, the growth of service, and public funding for the sciences. Fieldwork also required close coordination with the many institutions and technological systems of British imperialism.
The development of imaging technologies was, of course, crucial to observations of the solar corona. Eclipse observation taxed astronomers and their cameras to their limits, and it raised new questions about the trustworthiness of imaging technologies. In the late nineteenth century, scientists shifted from drawing to photographing natural phenomena, but the shift occurred gradually, unevenly, and against resistance. Victorian astronomers had to weigh carefully the merits of human and mechanical observation, and the difficulties of solar photography highlight the inseparability of images from technologies of observation and printing.

Loran and GPS notwithstanding, there will always be a place for the sextant aboard any blue-water boat, if for no other reason than the thrill and mystery of finding ones position on earth by gazing at the heavens. Here is the indispensable reference that should accompany the instrument aboard. Cmdr. Bruce Bauer, a professional navigator and master mariner with the U.S. Merchant Marine, has distilled years of hands-on experience into an eminently readable guide to buying, adjusting, using, and repairing sextants.

The Sextant Handbook is dedicated to the premise that electronic navigation devices, while too convenient to disregard, are too vulnerable to rely on exclusively. The book is designed to make beginner and expert alike conversant with this most beautiful and functional of the navigators tools. Topics include:

• Assembly and Disassembly
  
• Vital Adjustments
  
• Avoiding Problems
  
• Rough Weather Sightings
  
• Oiling and Cleaning
  
• Immersion Baths
  
• Emergency Silvering
  
• Finding and Buying Used Sextants
  
• And Much More
  

Youll also find a list of distributors, manufacturers, and dealers worldwide, a discussion of future trends, and numerous helpful hints, including sighting with eyeglasses and using a Rude starfinder. All in a thoroughly revised edition of a book acclaimed by navigation professionals.

This book is the product of five and a half years of research dedicated to the und- standing of radar interferometry, a relatively new space-geodetic technique for m- suring the earth's topography and its deformation. The main reason for undertaking this work, early 1995, was the fact that this technique proved to be extremely useful for wide-scale, fine-resolution deformation measurements. Especially the interf- ometric products from the ERS-1 satellite provided beautiful first results-several interferometric images appeared as highlights on the cover of journals such as Nature and Science. Accuracies of a few millimeters in the radar line of sight were claimed in semi-continuous image data acquired globally, irrespective of cloud cover or solar illumination. Unfortunately, because of the relative lack of supportive observations at these resolutions and accuracies, validation of the precision and reliability of the results remained an issue of concern. From a geodetic point of view, several survey techniques are commonly available to measure a specific geophysical phenomenon. To make an optimal choice between these techniques it is important to have a uniform and quantitative approach for describing the errors and how these errors propagate to the estimated parameters. In this context, the research described in this book was initiated. It describes issues involved with different types of errors, induced by the sensor, the data processing, satellite positioning accuracy, atmospheric propagation, and scattering character- tics. Nevertheless, as the first item in the subtitle "Data Interpretation and Error Analysis" suggests, data interpretation is not always straightforward.

These contributions by recognized authorities originate from a Royal Society discussion meeting held to review the most recent results obtained from the current generation of X-ray telescope research. The launch of Chandra and XMM-Newton has revolutionized research in X-ray astronomy over the past few years, and high quality X-ray observations now being made have had a major impact on topics ranging from protostars to cosmology. This book is a valuable reference for research astronomers and graduate students.

This fascinating portrait of an amateur astronomy movement tells the story of how Charles Olivier recruited a hard-working cadre of citizen scientists to rehabilitate the study of meteors. By 1936, Olivier and members of his American Meteor Society had succeeded in disproving an erroneous idea about meteor showers. Using careful observations, they restored the public's trust in predictions about periodic showers and renewed respect for meteor astronomy among professional astronomers in the United States. Charles Olivier and his society of observers who were passionate about watching for meteors in the night sky left a major impact on the field. In addition to describing Olivier's career and describing his struggles with competitive colleagues in a hostile scientific climate, the author provides biographies of some of the scores of women and men of all ages who aided Olivier in making shower observations, from the Leonids and Perseids and others. Half of these amateur volunteers were from 13 to 25 years of age. Their work allowed Olivier and the AMS to contradict the fallacious belief in stationary and long-enduring meteor showers, bringing the theory of their origin into alignment with celestial mechanics. Thanks to Olivier and his collaborators, the study of meteors took a great leap forward in the twentieth century to earn a place as a worthy topic of study among professional astronomers.

The exploration of the subnuclear world is done through increasingly complex experiments covering a wide range of energy and performed in a large variety of environments ranging from particle accelerators, underground detectors to satellites and the space laboratory. Among recent advances one has to indicate, for instance, first results obtained from space and LHC experiments and progress done in preparation of the latter experiments upgrades, including plans for the LHC machine upgrade. The achievement of these research programs calls for novel techniques, new materials and instrumentation to be used in detectors, often of large scale. Therefore, fundamental physics is at the forefront of technological advance and also leads to many applications. Among these, medical applications have a particular importance due to health and social benefits they bring to the public.

Very Short Introductions: Brilliant, Sharp, Inspiring Almost everything we know about the Universe has come from studying the messages carried by light from outer space. Until only a handful of decades ago, this meant observing optical photons in the narrow visible region of the electromagnetic spectrum. However, recent technological developments have now enabled us to extend this range and explore the Universe at radio, infrared, ultraviolet, X-ray, and gamma-ray wavelengths. The observations reveal a plethora of exotic phenomena such as young galaxies at the edge of the visible Universe, quasars, pulsars, colliding galaxies, and exploding stars, often at great distances. We have discovered that the Universe is expanding and that the expansion itself is accelerating. Closer to our home planet, we track killer asteroids and comets. Working closely together, observational astronomy and astrophysics have shown us how stars produce their energy, where the chemical elements come from, how black holes form, and how the giant supermassive black holes lurking in the hearts of galaxies spew immensely powerful jets of particles and energy thousands of light years out into space. And we now have new ways beyond light to probe the mysteries of the Universe. This Very Short Introduction describes how neutrinos and gravitational waves are revolutionizing our knowledge. How do we know all this? Advances in telescope technologies offer a partial explanation, but technology alone is not enough. Unlocking the secrets of the Universe also involves the critical application of the laws of physics to the observations. Cottrell describes how we are turning observations into knowledge and how theory, in turn, is inspiring new observations. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.

Reflector antennas are widely used in the microwave and millimeter wavelength domain. Radio astronomers have developed techniques of calibration of large antennas with radio astronomical methods. These have not been comprehensively described. This text aims to fill this gap. It takes a practical approach to the characterisation of antennas. All calculations and results in the form of tables and figures have been made with Mathematica by Wolfram Research. The reader can use the procedures for the implementation of his own input data. The book should be of use to all who are involved in the design and calibration of large antennas, like ground station managers and engineers, practicing radio astronomers and graduate students in radio astronomy and communication technology.

This book describes the development of astronomy in the Extreme Ultraviolet (EUV) wavelength range, from the first rocket-based experiments in the late 1960s through to the latest satellite missions. It provides detailed material on the tools of EUV astronomy, dealing with the instrumentation, observational techniques, and modelling tools for the interpretation of data. Prospects for future EUV missions are discussed, and a catalog of known EUV sources is included.

New Edition: Astronomical Spectroscopy (3rd Edition)Nearly all information about the Universe comes from the study of light as it reaches us. However, understanding the information contained in this light requires both telescopes capable of resolving it into its component colours and a detailed knowledge of the quantum mechanical behaviour of atoms and molecules. This book, which is based on a third-year undergraduate course taught by the author at University College London, presents the basic atomic and molecular physics necessary to understand and interpret astronomical spectra. It explains how and what kind of information can be extracted from these spectra. Contemporary astronomical spectra are used extensively to study the underlying atomic physics and illustrate the results.

New Edition: Astronomical Spectroscopy (3rd Edition)Nearly all information about the Universe comes from the study of light as it reaches us. However, understanding the information contained in this light requires both telescopes capable of resolving it into its component colours and a detailed knowledge of the quantum mechanical behaviour of atoms and molecules. This book, which is based on a third-year undergraduate course taught by the author at University College London, presents the basic atomic and molecular physics necessary to understand and interpret astronomical spectra. It explains how and what kind of information can be extracted from these spectra. Contemporary astronomical spectra are used extensively to study the underlying atomic physics and illustrate the results.

This book collects most of the talks and poster presentations presented at the 'Optical Turbulence - Astronomy meets Meteorology' international conference held on 15-18 September, 2008 at Nymphes Bay, Alghero, Sardinia, Italy. The meeting aimed to deal with one of the major causes of wavefront perturbations limiting the astronomical high-angular-resolution observations from the ground. The uniqueness of this meeting has been the effort to attack this topic in a synergic and multidisciplinary approach promoting constructive discussions between the actors of this science - the astronomers, meteorologists, physicists of the atmosphere and the experts in adaptive optics and interferometry techniques whose main goal is to correct, in real-time, the wavefront perturbations induced by atmospheric turbulence to restore at the telescope foci the best available image quality.

British University Observatories fills a gap in the historiography of British astronomy by offering the histories of observatories identified as a group by their shared characteristics. The first full histories of the Oxford and Cambridge observatories are here central to an explanatory history of each of the six that undertook research before World War II - Oxford, Dunsink, Cambridge, Durham, Glasgow and London. Each struggled to evolve in the middle ground between the royal observatories and those of the 'Grand Amateurs' in the nineteenth century. Fundamental issues are how and why astronomy came into the universities, how research was reconciled with teaching, lack of endowment, and response to the challenge of astrophysics. One organizing theme is the central importance of the individual professor-directors in determining the fortunes of these observatories, the community of assistants, and their role in institutional politics sometimes of the murkiest kind, patronage networks and discipline shaping coteries. The use of many primary sources illustrates personal motivations and experience. This book will intrigue anyone interested in the history of astronomy, of telescopes, of scientific institutions, and of the history of universities. The history of each individual observatory can easily be followed from foundation to 1939, or compared to experience elsewhere across the period. Astronomy is competitive and international, and the British experience is contextualised by comparison for the first time to those in Germany, France, Italy and the USA.

A valuable reference for students and professionals in the field of deep space navigation

Drawing on fundamental principles and practices developed during decades of deep space exploration at the California Institute of Technology’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), this book documents the formation of program Regres of JPL’s Orbit Determination Program (ODP). Program Regres calculates the computed values of observed quantities (e.g., Doppler and range observables) obtained at the tracking stations of the Deep Space Network, and also calculates media corrections for the computed values of the observable and partial derivatives of the computed values of the observables with respect to the solve-for-parameter vector-q. The ODP or any other program which uses its formulation can be used to navigate a spacecraft anywhere in the solar system.

A publication of the JPL Deep Space Communications and Navigation System Center of Excellence (DESCANSO), Formulation for Observed and Computed Values of Deep Space Network Data Types for Navigation is an invaluable resource for graduate students of celestial mechanics or astrodynamics because it:

• features the expertise of today’s top scientists
• places the entire program Regres formulation in an easy-to-access resource
• describes technology which will be used in the next generation of navigation software currently under development

The Deep Space Communications and Navigation Series is authored by scientists and engineers with extensive experience in astronautics, communications, and related fields. It lays the foundation for innovation in the areas of deep space navigation and communications by conveying state-of-the-art knowledge in key technologies.

Though contemporary sailors generally use electronic systems to orient themselves, the sextant is far from redundant. This purest of all nautical instruments, which allows seafarers to accurately determine their global position alone and without the aid of modern technology, is still required equipment on all commercial trading vessels; should electronic systems fail, a sextant can make the difference between disaster and survival. In this invaluable tutorial for beginning navigators, Pike clearly and efficiently explains the use and care of the sextant.

Interpreting Astronomical Spectra D. Emerson Institute for Astronomy, Department of Physics and Astronomy, The University of Edingurgh "Interpreting Astronomical Spectra" describes how physical conditions such as temperature, density and composition can be obtained from the spectra of a broad range of astronomical environments ranging from the cold interstellar medium to very hot coronal gas and from stellar atmospheres to quasars. In this book the author has succeeded in providing a coherent and integrated approach to the interpretation of astronomical spectroscopy, placing the emphasis on the physical understanding of spectrum formation rather than on instrumental considerations. MKS units and consistent symbols are employed throughout so that the fundamental ideas common to diverse environments are made clear and the importance of different temperature ranges and densities can be seen. Aimed at senior undergraduates and graduates studying physics, astronomy and astrophysics, this book will also appeal to the professional astronomer.

A new source of funding for astronomy stemmed from the creation of the National Science Foundation (NSF) in 1950. Astronomers were quick to take advantage of the opportunities this provided to found new observatories. In this 1997 book, the science and politics of the establishment, funding, construction and operation of the Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO) and the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO) by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA) are seen from the unique perspective of Frank K. Edmondson, a former member of the AURA board of directors. AURA was asked to manage the Sacramento Peak Observatory (SPO) in 1976, and in 1983 the National Solar Observatory (NSO) was formed by merging the SPO and the KPNO solar programs. In 1981 NASA chose AURA to establish and operate the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI). This is a personal account of a period of major innovation in American optical astronomy.