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The cover of The Day We Found the Universe

The Day We Found the Universe

Marcia Bartusiak

How did astronomers learn that our galaxy is one among countless others, and who argued their way to that answer?

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At a glance

Author
Marcia Bartusiak

Why read it

  • You will see how a big scientific question gets settled through rival ideas, better instruments and careful measurement
  • You will understand why the Sun is not at the centre of our galaxy, and how anyone could tell
  • You will learn to tell a thrilling idea from one the evidence supports, as with the old canals of Mars

Who it is for

  • A curious reader who wants the story of our place in space
  • Someone who enjoys science told through rivalries and personalities
  • A student of astronomy wanting the history behind the facts

Contents

  1. Preface
  2. January 1, 1925
  3. Setting Out
  4. The Little Republic of Science
  5. A Rather Remarkable Number of Nebulae
  6. Grander Than the Truth
  7. Such Is the Progress of Astronomy in the Wild and Wooly West
  8. My Regards to the Squashes
  9. It Is Worthy of Notice
  10. Exploration
  11. Empire Builder
  12. The Solar System Is Off Center and Consequently Man Is Too
  13. He Surely Looks Like the Fourth Dimension!
  14. Go at Each Other “Hammer and Tongs”
  15. Adonis
  16. On the Brink of a Big Discovery— or Maybe a Big Paradox
  17. Discovery
  18. Countless Whole Worlds… Strewn All Over the Sky
  19. Using the 100-Inch Telescope the Way It Should Be Used
  20. Your Calculations Are Correct, but Your Physical Insight Is Abominable
  21. Started Off with a Bang
  22. Whatever Happened to…
  23. A NOTE ON THE TYPE

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