Modern Earth-orbiting satellites are sophisticated machines that have transformed all aspects of human civilization from communications and navigation to defense, to global monitoring and intelligent stewardship of our planet. "Satellites" examines the evolution of these spacecrafts from the speculative writings of visionaries in the 19th century to the incredibly sophisticated platforms that have transformed every aspect of modern life. Using space technology to convey fundamental principles of mathematics, biology, chemistry, physics, and environmental science, "Satellites" has been...

Modern space robots are sophisticated exploring machines that have visited all the major worlds of the solar system except Pluto. "Robot Spacecraft" examines the evolution of these fascinating, far-traveling spacecraft - from the relatively unsophisticated planetary probes flown at the dawn of the Space Age to the incredibly powerful exploring machines that now allow scientists to conduct detailed, firsthand investigations of alien worlds within this solar system. "Robot Spacecraft" describes the historic events, scientific principles, and technical breakthroughs that now allow complex...

When two streams of technical development - remote sensing and space flight - joined forces in the middle of the 20th century, this technological union caused a major revolution in observational astronomy - similar to, if not more consequential, than when Galileo Galilei held his first primitive telescope up to the heavens in 1610. "Spacecraft for Astronomy" takes a close look at these types of phenomena by examining the important roles that astronomical instruments now play above the Earth's atmosphere. This volume also describes the historic events, scientific principles, and technical...

"Human Spaceflight" explores the epoch journeys of human beings as they first ventured beyond Earth's atmosphere, starting in the early 1960s, and traveled into outer space. One of the most memorable of these daring missions occurred on July 20, 1969, when American astronaut Neil Armstrong became the first human to walk on another world. This volume follows the evolution of space technology from the dawn of the Space Age to the present day, addressing such topics as human survival in space, a spacecraft's ability to launch people into orbit, and the safety and dangers of spaceflight. A number...

Human interest in the origins of life and the possibility of life on other planets extends far back into antiquity. Throughout history, each society's "creation myth" reflected that particular people's view of the extent of the universe and their place within it. Today, due to advances in space technology, the scope of those early perceptions has expanded well beyond the reaches of our solar system to the stars, vast interstellar clouds, and numerous galaxies that populate the seemingly infinite expanse of outer space. "Life in the Universe" provides a Space Age examination of the basic...