timlevang

Continuing on my summer reading of science and science fiction, I delved into the study of the universe, or more precisely, to viewing the world outside of our own planet. In Seeing in the Dark, Timothy Ferris presents an enormous amount of information in only 300 pages of writing (nearly another 100 pages consist of the appendix). "As one is so often reminded when gazing into the depths of the night sky, nothing is more fantastic than the real." First, he talks about the field of astronomy, and how amateur astronomers are instrumental in new discoveries. This is mainly due to their sheer numbers and the enormity of the universe available for viewing. Second, Ferris talks about some of the amateur astronomers, how they turned a hobby into a virtual unpaid profession, and some of their discoveries. I enjoyed the personal stories and the enthusiasm shared in them. Third, the author takes us along a journey into our solar system and the heavens beyond. Some of this is slow reading – scientific verbage that makes me reach back to my college memories of Astronomy and Cosmology classes. But that’s okay, because this is, in many ways like textbook. (In fact, my Cosmology professor assigned another of Timothy’s Ferris’ books in his class). And like a textbook of any subject you are vastly interested in, you’ll want to hang on to it, to refer back to again and again. It’s hard not to be fascinated by this subject. For instance, on the topic of galaxies: “Needless to say, they’re really big. Were the sun a grain of sand, Earth’s orbit would be an inch in radius, the solar system the size of a beach ball, and the nearest star another sand grain four miles away. Yet even on that absurdly compressed scale, the Milky Way galaxy would be a hundred thousand miles wide.” Lastly, for anyone wishing to step outside and take a look at the night sky themselves, this book offers practical how-to advice for just about any level. I think I’ll pull a lawnchair outside tonight, borrow my son’s telescope, and watch the stars put on a show.

2022-11-14 14:14