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Black holes are the most extreme objects in the universe, yet every
galaxy harbours a black hole at its centre. In Einstein's Monsters,
Chris Impey builds on this profound discovery to explore questions
at the cutting edge of cosmology, such as what happens if you
travel into a black hole and whether the galaxy or its black hole
came first. Impey chronicles the role black holes have played in
theoretical physics. He then describes the phenomena that
scientists have witnessed while observing black holes: dozens of
stars swarming around the dark object at the centre of our galaxy;
black holes performing gravitational waltzes with normal stars; the
cymbal clash of two black holes colliding, releasing ripples in
spacetime. Einstein's Monsters is the incredible story of one of
the most enigmatic entities in nature.
Black holes are the most extreme objects in the universe, yet every
galaxy harbours a black hole at its centre. In Einstein's Monsters,
Chris Impey builds on this profound discovery to explore questions
at the cutting edge of cosmology, such as what happens if you
travel into a black hole and whether the galaxy or its black hole
came first. Impey chronicles the role black holes have played in
theoretical physics. He then describes the phenomena that
scientists have witnessed while observing black holes: dozens of
stars swarming around the dark object at the centre of our galaxy;
black holes performing gravitational waltzes with normal stars; the
cymbal clash of two black holes colliding, releasing ripples in
spacetime. Einstein's Monsters is the incredible story of one of
the most enigmatic entities in nature.
Astrobiology is an exciting interdisciplinary field that seeks to
answer one of the most important and profound questions: are we
alone? In this volume, leading international experts explore the
frontiers of astrobiology, investigating the latest research
questions that will fascinate a wide interdisciplinary audience at
all levels. What is the earliest evidence for life on Earth? Where
are the most likely sites for life in the Solar System? Could life
have evolved elsewhere in the Galaxy? What are the best strategies
for detecting intelligent extraterrestrial life? How many habitable
or Earth-like exoplanets are there? Progress in astrobiology over
the past decade has been rapid and, with evidence accumulating that
Mars once hosted standing bodies of liquid water, the discovery of
over 500 exoplanets and new insights into how life began on Earth,
the scientific search for our origins and place in the cosmos
continues.
Considering the development of life on Earth, the existence of life
in extreme environments and the potential for life elsewhere in the
Universe, this book gives a fascinating insight into our place in
the Universe. Chris Impey leads the reader through the history,
from the Copernican revolution to the emergence of the field of
astrobiology - the study of life in the cosmos. He examines how
life on Earth began, exploring its incredible variety and the
extreme environments in which it can survive. Finally, Impey turns
his attention to our Solar System and the planets beyond,
discussing whether there may be life elsewhere in the Universe.
Written in non-technical language, this book is ideal for anyone
wanting to know more about astrobiology and how it is changing our
views of life and the Universe. An accompanying website available
at www.cambridge.org/9780521173841 features podcasts, articles and
news stories on astrobiology.
With over 500 planets now known to exist beyond the Solar System,
spacecraft heading for Mars, and the ongoing search for
extraterrestrial intelligence, this timely book explores current
ideas about the search for life in the Universe. It contains candid
interviews with dozens of astronomers, geologists, biologists, and
writers about the origin and range of terrestrial life and likely
sites for life beyond Earth. The interviewees discuss what we've
learnt from the missions to Mars and Titan, talk about the search
for Earth clones, describe the surprising diversity of life on
Earth, speculate about post-biological evolution, and explore what
contact with intelligent aliens will mean to us. Covering topics
from astronomy and planetary science to geology and biology, this
book will fascinate anyone who has ever wondered 'Are we alone?'
Dreams of Other Worlds describes the unmanned space missions that
have opened new windows on distant worlds. Spanning four decades of
dramatic advances in astronomy and planetary science, this book
tells the story of eleven iconic exploratory missions and how they
have fundamentally transformed our scientific and cultural
perspectives on the universe and our place in it. The journey
begins with the Viking and Mars Exploration Rover missions to Mars,
which paint a startling picture of a planet at the cusp of
habitability. It then moves into the realm of the gas giants with
the Voyager probes and Cassini's ongoing exploration of the moons
of Saturn. The Stardust probe's dramatic round-trip encounter with
a comet is brought vividly to life, as are the SOHO and Hipparcos
missions to study the Sun and Milky Way. This stunningly
illustrated book also explores how our view of the universe has
been brought into sharp focus by NASA's great
observatories--Spitzer, Chandra, and Hubble--and how the WMAP
mission has provided rare glimpses of the dawn of creation. Dreams
of Other Worlds reveals how these unmanned exploratory missions
have redefined what it means to be the temporary tenants of a small
planet in a vast cosmos.
"Dreams of Other Worlds" describes the unmanned space missions
that have opened new windows on distant worlds. Spanning four
decades of dramatic advances in astronomy and planetary science,
this book tells the story of eleven iconic exploratory missions and
how they have fundamentally transformed our scientific and cultural
perspectives on the universe and our place in it.
The journey begins with the Viking and Mars Exploration Rover
missions to Mars, which paint a startling picture of a planet at
the cusp of habitability. It then moves into the realm of the gas
giants with the Voyager probes and Cassini's ongoing exploration of
the moons of Saturn. The Stardust probe's dramatic round-trip
encounter with a comet is brought vividly to life, as are the SOHO
and Hipparcos missions to study the Sun and Milky Way. This
stunningly illustrated book also explores how our view of the
universe has been brought into sharp focus by NASA's great
observatories--Spitzer, Chandra, and Hubble--and how the WMAP
mission has provided rare glimpses of the dawn of creation.
"Dreams of Other Worlds" reveals how these unmanned exploratory
missions have redefined what it means to be the temporary tenants
of a small planet in a vast cosmos.
With plans to launch hotels into orbit and experiments in
suspending and reanimating life for ultra-long-distance travel,
private companies and entrepreneurs have outpaced NASA which is
bogged down by terrestrial concerns as the leaders in the new space
race. With accessible prose and relentless curiosity, Chris Impey
reports on China s plan to launch its own space station by 2020,
proves that humans could survive on Mars, and unveils cutting-edge
innovations such as the space elevators poised to replace rockets
at a fraction of the cost. Setting mankind s urge toward
exploration in the context of all human history and space travel
thus far, he shows that the present-day scientists mapping billions
of Earth-like exo-planets are the descendants of the first humans
to venture out of Africa. We must forge ahead, argues Beyond,
because exploration is in our DNA."
In this vibrant, eye-opening tour of milestones in the history of
our universe, Chris Impey guides us through space and time, leading
us from the familiar sights of the night sky to the dazzlingly
strange aftermath of the Big Bang. What if we could look into space
and see not only our place in the universe but also how we came to
be here? As it happens, we can. Because it takes time for light to
travel, we see more and more distant regions of the universe as
they were in the successively greater past. Impey uses this concept
"look-back time" to take us on an intergalactic tour that is
simultaneously out in space and back in time. Performing a type of
cosmic archaeology, Impey brilliantly describes the astronomical
clues that scientists have used to solve fascinating mysteries
about the origins and development of our universe. The milestones
on this journey range from the nearby to the remote: we travel from
the Moon, Jupiter, and the black hole at the heart of our galaxy
all the way to the first star, the first ray of light, and even the
strange, roiling conditions of the infant universe, an intense and
volatile environment in which matter was created from pure energy.
Impey gives us breathtaking visual descriptions and also explains
what each landmark can reveal about the universe and its history.
His lucid, wonderfully engaging scientific discussions bring us to
the brink of modern cosmology and physics, illuminating such
mind-bending concepts as invisible dimensions, timelessness, and
multiple universes. A dynamic and unforgettable portrait of the
cosmos, How It Began will reward its readers with a deeper
understanding of the universe we inhabit as well as a renewed sense
of wonder at its beauty and mystery."
With plans to launch hotels into orbit and experiments in
suspending and reanimating life for ultra-long-distance travel,
private companies and entrepreneurs have outpaced NASA as the
leaders in the new space race. With accessible prose and relentless
curiosity, Chris Impey reports on China's plan to launch its own
space station by 2020, proves that humans could survive on Mars and
unveils cutting-edge innovations such as the space elevators poised
to replace rockets at a fraction of the cost. Setting mankind's
urge towards exploration in the context of all human history and
space travel thus far, he shows that the present-day scientists
mapping billions of Earth-like exo-planets are the descendants of
the first humans to venture out of Africa. We must forge ahead,
argues Beyond, because exploration is in our DNA.
McEvoy is a truth-seeker. He has moments when he sees through the
surface sheen of the world to a deeper reality, and moments when
his sense of self dissolves. The Scotsman is restless, a wanderer.
He flings himself into new relationships, even as he flees family
secrets. In Shadow World, we see through McEvoy's eyes as he grows
from boisterous youth to a man defined equally by darkness and
light. We meet his demons and his lovers. His adventure unfolds
like beads on a string, with each episode separate yet connected.
His journey takes him from the Arizona desert to the wilds of
Patagonia, from the Silk Road in China to the lush countryside of
Ireland, ending in a twilight zone near the Arctic Circle. Shadow
World is a first novel by noted popular science writer Chris Impey.
Shadow World inhabits the boundary between narrative fiction and
science fiction. It explores the tension between artifacts and
natural forms, between reality and illusion, between the science
that is and the science that might be. The novel is filled with
intriguing characters. We meet a death camp survivor for whom music
is everything, a relentless archeologist who is rewriting the story
of human civilization, a mercurial sculptor who has a personality
that mirrors her art, identical twins who inhabit parallel worlds
of science and religion, a brilliant but raunchy astrophysicist,
and an enigmatic philosopher who seems to know McEvoy better than
he knows himself. By the end of his twenty-year odyssey, McEvoy has
gained a startling insight into his reality, and perhaps ours as
well.
Science and Theology: Ruminations on the Cosmos presents the
keynote addresses of a unique meeting organized by the Vatican
Observatory, which aimed to facilitate dialogue between science and
religion among established philosophers, theologians, and
scientists that would also be relevant in the work and lives of
young scholars. The speakers include young scientists, alumni of
Vatican Observatory Schools presenting research, and renowned
international scholars offering insights into pertinent topics,
including William Carroll on creation in Aquinas and Big Bang
cosmology, Owen Gingerich on intelligent design, Ernan McMullin on
the anthropic principle, and Lynn Rothschild on astrobiology. This
well-balanced collection integrates new factual scientific research
into religious and philosophical discussion.
Most of us are aware of our own mortality, but few among us know
what science, with insights yielded from groundbreaking new
research, has to say about endings on a larger scale. Enter
astronomer Chris Impey, who chronicles the death of the whole
shebang: individual, species, bio- sphere, Earth, Sun, Milky Way,
and, finally, the entire universe. With a healthy dose of humor,
How It Ends illuminates everything from the technologies of human
life extension and the evolutionary arms race between microbes and
men to the inescapable dimming of the Sun and the ultimate "big
rip," giving us a rare glimpse into a universe without us.
Are we alone in the universe? Are the planets our playground to
treat as we will, or do we have a responsibility to other creatures
who may inhabit or use them? Do we have a right to dump trash in
space or leave vehicles on Mars or the moon? How should we interact
with other life forms?
"Encountering Life in the Universe" examines the intersection of
scientific research and society to further explore the ethics of
how to behave in a universe where much is unknown. Taking
contributions from notable experts in several fields, the editors
skillfully introduce and develop a broad look at the moral
questions facing humans on Earth and beyond.
Major advances in biology, biotechnology, and medicine create an
urgency to ethical considerations in those fields. Astrobiology
goes on to debate how we might behave as we explore new worlds, or
create new life in the laboratory, or interact with
extraterrestrial life forms. Stimulated by new technologies for
scientific exploration on and off the Earth, astrobiology is
establishing itself as a distinct scientific endeavor.
In what way can established philosophies provide guidance for the
new frontiers opened by astrobiology research? Can the foundations
of ethics and moral philosophy help answer questions about
modifying other planets? Or about how to conduct experiments to
create life in the lab or about? How to interact with organisms we
might discover on another world?
While we wait for the first echo that might indicate life beyond
Earth, astobiologists, along with philosophers, theologians,
artists, and the general public, are exploring how we might
behave--even before we know for sure they are there." Encountering
Life in the Universe" is a remarkable resource for such
philosophical challenges.
In this vibrant, eye-opening tour of milestones in the history of
our universe, Chris Impey guides us through space and time, leading
us from the familiar sights of the night sky to the dazzlingly
strange aftermath of the Big Bang. What if we could look into space
and see not only our place in the universe but also how we came to
be here? As it happens, we can. Because it takes time for light to
travel, we see more and more distant regions of the universe as
they were in the successively greater past. Impey uses this concept
"look-back time" to take us on an intergalactic tour that is
simultaneously out in space and back in time. Performing a type of
cosmic archaeology, Impey brilliantly describes the astronomical
clues that scientists have used to solve fascinating mysteries
about the origins and development of our universe. The milestones
on this journey range from the nearby to the remote: we travel from
the Moon, Jupiter, and the black hole at the heart of our galaxy
all the way to the first star, the first ray of light, and even the
strange, roiling conditions of the infant universe, an intense and
volatile environment in which matter was created from pure energy.
Impey gives us breathtaking visual descriptions and also explains
what each landmark can reveal about the universe and its history.
His lucid, wonderfully engaging scientific discussions bring us to
the brink of modern cosmology and physics, illuminating such
mind-bending concepts as invisible dimensions, timelessness, and
multiple universes. A dynamic and unforgettable portrait of the
cosmos, How It Began will reward its readers with a deeper
understanding of the universe we inhabit as well as a renewed sense
of wonder at its beauty and mystery."
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