For many years I was organizing a weekly seminar on dynamical astronomy, and I used to make some historical remarks on every subject, including some anecdotes from my contacts with many leading scientists over the years. I described also the development of various subjects and the emergence of new ideasindynamicalastronomy. Thenseveralpeoplepromptedmetowritedown these remarks, which cannot be found in papers, or books. Thus, I decided to write this book, which contains my experiences over the years. I hope that this book may be helpful to astronomy students all over the world. During my many...
For many years I was organizing a weekly seminar on dynamical astronomy, and I used to make some historical remarks on every subject, including some a...
The millimeter-wave radio telescope of the National Radio Astronomy - servatory(theNRAO)wasoneofthemostsuccessfultelescopeseverbuiltin the United States. Planned in 1962 and constructed on Kitt Peak, Arizona, this 36-ft parabolic antenna was not completed until 1967 because of the technical challenges associated with its noveldesign. Its early years produced few astronomically signi?cant results. These observations consisted of continuum observations primarily at ?3mm but also at ?1.2mm. The problem was the low sensitivity of millimeter-wave radio receivers availableatthe time. What could be...
The millimeter-wave radio telescope of the National Radio Astronomy - servatory(theNRAO)wasoneofthemostsuccessfultelescopeseverbuiltin the United Stat...
Strasbourg Astronomical Observatory is quite an interesting place for historians: several changes of nationality between France and Germany, high-profile scientists having been based there, big projects born or installed within its walls, and so on.
Most of the documents circulating on the history of the Observatory and on related matters have however been so far poorly referenced, if at all. This made necessary the compilation of a volume such as this one, offering fully-documented historical facts and references on the first decades of the Observatory history, authored by both French...
Strasbourg Astronomical Observatory is quite an interesting place for historians: several changes of nationality between France and Germany, high-p...
The emphasis on white dwarf stars and cosmology arises from the most recent advances in cosmological and galactic structure research in which white dwarf stars are playing a very prominent role. Examples are Type Ia supernovae (i.e. white dwarf supernovae), the origin and evolution of the universe, the age of the galactic disk, cosmochronology using white dwarfs in globular clusters and galactic clusters, and the physics of accretion onto compact (very dense) stars. As an assisting guide to the reader, we have included, by invitation, comprehensive review articles in each of the four major...
The emphasis on white dwarf stars and cosmology arises from the most recent advances in cosmological and galactic structure research in which white...
This is an unusual book, combining as it does papers on astrobiology, history of astronomy and sundials, but after all Woody Sullivan is an unusual man. In late 2003 I spent two fruitful and enjoyable months in the Astronomy Department at the University of Washington (UW) working on archival material accumulated over the decades by Woody, for a book we will co-author with Jessica Chapman on the early development of Australian astronomy. The only serious intellectual distraction I faced during this period was planning for an IAU colloquium on transits of Venus scheduled for June 2004 in...
This is an unusual book, combining as it does papers on astrobiology, history of astronomy and sundials, but after all Woody Sullivan is an unusual ma...
Thepublication oftheHipparcos andTycho Catalogues in 1997 transformed astrometry, and as a consequence astronomers perception of astrometry. What had before often been regarded as a somewhat quaint specialty of limited re- vance to modern astrophysics, was suddenly seen to produce a wealth of data of immediate practical use. The ready availability of many thousand precise trigonometric stellar distances and the access to an accurate and dense - tical reference frame have changed the way astronomers think about certain problems and plan their experiments. Inevitably, the exploitation of so...
Thepublication oftheHipparcos andTycho Catalogues in 1997 transformed astrometry, and as a consequence astronomers perception of astrometry. What had ...
In their approach to Earth dynamics the authors consider the fundamentals of "Jacobi Dynamics" (1987, Reidel) for two reasons. First, because satellite observations have proved that the Earth does not stay in hydrostatic equilibrium, which is the physical basis of today's treatment of geodynamics. And secondly, because satellite data have revealed a relationship between gravitational moments and the potential of the Earth's outer force field (potential energy), which is the basis of "Jacobi Dynamics." This has also enabled the authors to come back to the derivation of the classical virial...
In their approach to Earth dynamics the authors consider the fundamentals of "Jacobi Dynamics" (1987, Reidel) for two reasons. First, because satel...
This book deals with the physics of cosmic ray diffusion theory, focusing on the physics of nonlinear transport of cosmic rays through turbulent interplanetary or interstellar plasma. The author proposes future research that could advance the field.
This book deals with the physics of cosmic ray diffusion theory, focusing on the physics of nonlinear transport of cosmic rays through turbulent in...
Written by international experts, this book explores the possibilities for the next 20 years in conducting gravitational experiments in space that would make the most of the new and much-improved existing capabilities. They start from the premise that over the next decade the gravitational physics community will benefit from dramatic improvements in many technologies critical to the tests of gravity. This volume contains a comprehensive presentation of the theory, technology, missions and projects on relativistic gravity in space.
Written by international experts, this book explores the possibilities for the next 20 years in conducting gravitational experiments in space that ...
Black hole gravitohydromagnetics (GHM) is developed from the rudiments to the frontiers of research in this book. GHM describes plasma interactions that combine the effects of gravity and a strong magnetic field, in the vicinity (ergosphere) of a rapidly rotating black hole. This topic was created in response to the astrophysical quest to understand the central engines of radio loud extragalactic radio sources. The theory describes a "torsional tug of war" between rotating ergospheric plasma and the distant asymptotic plasma that extracts the rotational inertia of the black hole. The...
Black hole gravitohydromagnetics (GHM) is developed from the rudiments to the frontiers of research in this book. GHM describes plasma interactions...
