Camille Flammarion (1842-1925) began his career at 16 as a human computer under the great mathematician U. J. J. Le Verrier at the Paris Observatory.  He soon tired of the drudgery; he was drawn to more romantic vistas, and at 19 wrote a book on an idea that he was to make his own—the habitability of other worlds.  There followed a career as France’s greatest popularizer of astronomy, with over 60 titles to his credit.  An admirer granted him a chateau at Juvisy-sur-l’Orge, and he set up a first-rate observatory dedicated to the study of the planet Mars. Finally, in 1892, he published his masterpiece, La Planete Mars et ses conditions d’habitabilite, a comprehensive summary of three centuries’ worth of literature on Mars, much of it based on his own personal research into rare memoirs and archives.  As a history of that era, it has never been surpassed, and remains one of a handful of indispensable books on the red planet. Sir Patrick Moore (1923-2012) needs no introduction; his record of popularizing astronomy in Britain in the 20th century equaled Flammarion’s in France in the 19th century.  Moore pounded out hundreds of books as well as served as presenter of the BBC’s TV program “Sky at Night� program for 55 years (a world record).  Though Moore always insisted that the Moon was his chef-d’oeuvre, Mars came a close second, and in 1980 he produced a typescript of Flammarion’s classic.  Unfortunately, even he found the project too daunting for his publish ers and passed the torch of keeping the project alive to a friend, the amateur astronomer and author William Sheehan, in 1993. Widely regarded as a leading historian of the planet Mars,  Sheehan has not only meticulously compared and corrected Moore’s manuscript against Flammarion’s original so as to produce an authoritative text, he has  added an important introduction showing the book’s significance in the history of Mars studies.  Here results a book that remains an invaluable resource and is also a literary tour-de-force, in which the inimitable style of Flammarion has been rendered in the equally unique style of Moore.

French astronomer Camille Flammarion (1842-1925) called the study of the heavens 'the science which concerns us most'. He believed that learning 'what place we occupy in the infinite' could delight and instruct, and might even promote an end to war and strife. Flammarion dedicated the present work to Francois Arago (1786-1853), author of earlier work on popular astronomy. Since Arago's time, the capabilities of telescopes and other instruments had vastly improved, advancing understanding in areas such as the composition of stars. Flammarion sought to bring this new knowledge to the public in a charming yet 'scrupulously exact' style. His highly illustrated introduction to astronomy succeeded in reaching a wide readership, selling over 100,000 French copies before this English translation appeared in 1894. The 1881 French version and Flammarion's work on the origins of the Earth, Le Monde avant la creation de l'homme (1886), are also reissued in this series.

Camille Flammarion (1842-1925) began his career at 16 as a human computer under the great mathematician U. J. J. Le Verrier at the Paris Observatory. He soon tired of the drudgery; he was drawn to more romantic vistas, and at 19 wrote a book on an idea that he was to make his own-the habitability of other worlds. There followed a career as France's greatest popularizer of astronomy, with over 60 titles to his credit. An admirer granted him a chateau at Juvisy-sur-l'Orge, and he set up a first-rate observatory dedicated to the study of the planet Mars. Finally, in 1892, he published his masterpiece, La Planete Mars et ses conditions d'habitabilite, a comprehensive summary of three centuries' worth of literature on Mars, much of it based on his own personal research into rare memoirs and archives. As a history of that era, it has never been surpassed, and remains one of a handful of indispensable books on the red planet. Sir Patrick Moore (1923-2012) needs no introduction; his record of popularizing astronomy in Britain in the 20th century equaled Flammarion's in France in the 19th century. Moore pounded out hundreds of books as well as served as presenter of the BBC's TV program "Sky at Night" program for 55 years (a world record). Though Moore always insisted that the Moon was his chef-d'oeuvre, Mars came a close second, and in 1980 he produced a typescript of Flammarion's classic. Unfortunately, even he found the project too daunting for his publish ers and passed the torch of keeping the project alive to a friend, the amateur astronomer and author William Sheehan, in 1993. Widely regarded as a leading historian of the planet Mars, Sheehan has not only meticulously compared and corrected Moore's manuscript against Flammarion's original so as to produce an authoritative text, he has added an important introduction showing the book's significance in the history of Mars studies. Here results a book that remains an invaluable resource and is also a literary tour-de-force, in which the inimitable style of Flammarion has been rendered in the equally unique style of Moore.

Omega, written by astronomer Camille Flammarion (1842-1925), is no less than an epic history of our future-a startling and unforgettable vision of the end of the world. Reasoned scientific speculation combined with probing philosophical inquiry lend credibility and magnitude to this tale of how humankind will physically and culturally evolve over the next several million years. The end begins in the twenty-fifth century, when a comet threatens to collide with the earth. The consequences of that frightening cosmic event are far-reaching, setting in motion a series of physical, psychic, and social changes that will profoundly affect the planet and its people far into the future. The earth's surface drastically transforms over time. Cultures radically alter, collapse, and fade away. Nations rise and fall, species become extinct, and human beings find themselves at the end of the world, alone and changed in fundamental ways. This melancholic, poetic science fiction tale of things to come is as compelling and disturbing today as when it was first written. Camille Flammarion was a well-known French astronomer and writer who popularized science in the late nineteenth century. Robert Silverberg, an acclaimed science fiction writer, is the recipient of many awards, including multiple Hugo and Nebula awards.

French astronomer Camille Flammarion (1842 1925) won acclaim for bringing science to a general readership. His Astronomie populaire (1880) and its translation into English as Popular Astronomy (1894) are both reissued in this series. The present work, on the origins of the Earth and humankind, sold tens of thousands of copies. Flammarion's original purpose was to update Zimmermann's Le monde avant la creation de l'homme, published a quarter of a century earlier. However, scientific understanding had progressed so much that he decided to rewrite the work completely. First published in 1886, it contains some 400 wood engravings depicting dramatic landscapes, dinosaurs, fossils and much more. Ranging from early chapters on the universe and solar system, through to later discussion of the emergence of humankind after aeons of evolution, this book will prove an absorbing read for those interested in a nineteenth-century perspective on the origins of life."

French astronomer Camille Flammarion (1842 1925) firmly believed that science should not be the preserve of elites. His passion for the discoveries of his time is palpable throughout this classic introduction to astronomy, which stands as a landmark in the history of popular science writing. It features 360 illustrations, including highly detailed maps of the Moon and Mars, the latter being of special interest for Flammarion as he compared and contrasted it with the Earth. Originally published in 1880, the work won the approval of the Academie Francaise and the Minister of Public Instruction. This reissue is of the version that appeared in 1881 after 50,000 copies had already reached an enthusiastic readership. Its translation into English as Popular Astronomy (1894) and another accessible work by Flammarion, Le Monde avant la creation de l'homme (1886), are also reissued in this series."