Rock Legends
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- Synopsis
- This book relates the history ofasteroid discoveries and christenings, from those of the early pioneeringgiants of Hersehel and Piazzi to modern-day amateurs. Moving from history andanecdotal information to science, the book's structure is provided by the namesof the asteroids, including one named after the author. Free from a need to conform toscientific naming conventions, the names evidence hero-worship, sycophancy,avarice, vanity, whimsy, erudition and wit, revealing the human side ofastronomers, especially where controversy has followed the christening. Murdindraws from extensive historical records to explore the debate over these names. Each age reveals its own biases and preferences in the naming process. Originally regarded as "vermin ofthe skies," asteroids are minor planets, rocky scraps left over from theformation of the larger planets, or broken fragments of worlds that havecollided. Their scientific classification as "minor" planets makes them seemunimportant, but over the past decades asteroids have been acknowledged to bekey players in the Solar System. This view of their starring role even alters thetrajectories of spacecraft: NASA's policy for new space missions en route tothe outer planets is that they must divert to study passing asteroids wheneverpossible. This book provides for readers a complete tour of the fascinatingworld of asteroids.
- Copyright:
- 2016
Book Details
- Book Quality:
- Publisher Quality
- ISBN-13:
- 9783319318363
- Publisher:
- Springer International Publishing, Cham
- Date of Addition:
- 09/28/16
- Copyrighted By:
- Springer
- Adult content:
- No
- Language:
- English
- Has Image Descriptions:
- No
- Categories:
- Nonfiction, Science
- Submitted By:
- Bookshare Staff
- Usage Restrictions:
- This is a copyrighted book.