Heaven's Touch
Princeton University Press (Verlag)
978-0-691-12946-4 (ISBN)
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Did you know that as you read these words showers of high-speed particles from exploding stars are raining down on you? As you gaze into the starry sky, you might feel isolated from the Universe around you--but you're not. This book reveals the startling ways life on Earth is touched by our cosmic environment, and demonstrates why without such contact, life itself wouldn't be possible. Heaven's Touch embarks on an unforgettable journey across the cosmos, beginning in near space with a look at the gentle ebb and flow of lunar and solar tides. Acclaimed astronomer James Kaler describes their subtle effects on our world and also explores the Sun's more potent influences, such as solar storms that cause auroras, give comets their tails, and knock out power grids on Earth. He ventures across the Solar System to consider how the planets can act to produce climate change, even global disaster. Kaler shows how Jupiter's gravity can throw asteroids toward potentially devastating collision with Earth, and how even our whole Galaxy might hurl comet storms at us.
He then takes us into deepest space to describe the cosmic rays launched at us from exploding stars, and considers not just how these exploders might harm us, but how they also join together in the creation of stars and how they serve to populate the Universe with the very building blocks of life. Informative and entertaining, Heaven's Touch reveals how intimately connected we really are with the dynamic Universe in which we live.
James B. Kaler is professor emeritus of astronomy at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. His many books include "The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Stars" and "The Hundred Greatest Stars".
Preface and Acknowledgments xi Chapter 1: Reaching Out 1 Stars 2 Planets 4 Light 5 The Milky Way 8 Galaxies 11 The Universe 12 Darkness 14 Heaven's Touch 17 Chapter 2: Tides of Life 21 (1) Gravity 22 (2) Phases 25 Tidal Stretching 27 Tidal Lag 29 Tidal Clock 30 Now Add the Sun ... 31 ... And Elliptical Orbits 32 "Time and Tide ..." 34 How High the Moon 37 It's Mutual 39 Chapter 3: Solar Storm 42 Neutrinos Going to Get You (Even If You Do Watch Out) 44 (1) Oatmeal 48 (2) Spin 51 Magnetism 51 Windy Crown 52 eturn to Earth ... 56 ... And Get Hit 57 Vanishing Act, Part I 60 Solar Cycle 61 Effects 62 Vanishing Act, Part II 64 Vibes 65 Chapter 4: Frozen Earth 67 Seasons 68 Wobbles 72 Planets 75 In Motion 77 The Celestial Mechanic 79 Planets Perturbed 81 God of the Sea 82 Changing Earth 85 Message from Mercury 86 Tip and Bend 87 Mister Milankovitch 90 Chapter 5: The Accidental Asteroid 93 Numerology 94 Origins 96 Child on a Swing 100 Resonating Asteroids 102 Kick on Goal 103 A Shocking Story 104 Heaven's Rocks 107 Interpretation 108 A Steady Rain 110 And Then the Hailstorm 111 Wipeout 113 And Now? 116 Pitch and Catch 117 Chapter 6: Crashing Comets 120 Tale of the Chainsaw 120 A Tale of Two Tails 121 A Scary Tail Tale 123 Structure 125 Getting Back (Twice) 127 Breaking Up (Is Not That Hard to Do) 128 "Passing Showers" 130 Twilight of the Dust 132 Pathways 133 Kuiper 134 So What's Pluto? 135 O ort 137 There and Back 137 Collision 139 Strikes and More Showers 141 Water 143 Spacefarers 144 Chapter 7: Atomic Rain 145 Radiation 145 Stumbling in the Dark 146 "Energy, People, Energy!" 149 Kinds 150 Composition 152 Long-Lost Origins 152 Star Lives 154 Boom 158 That Pesky High End 162 (1, 2) Star Formation 163 (3) Laundry 165 (4) From Lost Times 166 But 168 (5) Donner and Blitzen 169 (6) Bound for Space 171 Chapter 8: Super Star 173 Yesteryear 174 1054, 1572, 1885, and A' That 178 I and II 180 Chandra's Limit 181 March of the Supernovae 185 Closer Yet? 187 A Bad Tan and Other Disasters 189 Penguins, Soybeans, and Ants 192 Catch a Falling Neutrino 194 Shocks and Fields 195 Chapter 9: Hyperstars 199 In the Navy 199 Identification 202 Long Bursts 204 Hypernovae 205 Sliding into the Pit 207 Into a Black Hole 209 And What Does All This Mean? 212 And in the Future? 213 Afterglow 216 Safety Zone 218 Quick Time 218 Magnetar: The Future Is Here 219 Chapter 10: Coming Home 223 In the Beginning 223 Ancient Stars and Forming Galaxies 225 At the Table 228 Neutrons 232 Rapid Capture 234 A Story from Other Worlds 236 Heaven's Touch 238 Index 241
| Erscheint lt. Verlag | 9.8.2009 |
|---|---|
| Zusatzinfo | 59 b/w illus. |
| Verlagsort | New Jersey |
| Sprache | englisch |
| Maße | 152 x 235 mm |
| Gewicht | 652 g |
| Themenwelt | Sachbuch/Ratgeber ► Natur / Technik |
| Naturwissenschaften ► Physik / Astronomie ► Astronomie / Astrophysik | |
| ISBN-10 | 0-691-12946-0 / 0691129460 |
| ISBN-13 | 978-0-691-12946-4 / 9780691129464 |
| Zustand | Neuware |
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