Solar System - Hardcover

Hey, Nigel

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0304359947 ISBN 13: 9780304359943

Publisher: Weidenfeld & Nicolson Ltd, 2002

Synopsis

Even though no little men have been found on Mars (or goddesses on Venus), our celestial neighborhood is stranger than anyone ever imagined. New information from robot probes and telescopes has exploded ideas taken for granted for years. Recently verified facts are now illustrated in amazing photos: rainfalls of diamonds on Neptune; dust storms stirred by 6000-mph winds on Jupiter; Saturn's 30 moons, including 12 discovered since 2000. Also shown: everyday occurrences on Venus that would be life-ending catastrophes on earth, and close-ups of long-ago river systems on Mars. Each planet appears in paintings based on you-are-there realism, backed by new introductions by leading scientists explaining how the solar system began and what it teaches us about our own planet.

About this title

About the Author

Nigel Hey is a science writer who lives on the outskirts of Albuquerque, New Mexico. A native of England, he sold his first story to the BBC at the age of 11. After an early journalistic career in Britain, the U.S. and Bermuda, he joined Sandia National Laboratories, a large Department of Energy R&D laboratory, as a science/technology writer. He returned to London to help start a pharmaceuticals publishing group, then was re-hired as head of Sandia’s public information team in 1982. In October 2001 he began an independent media consultancy while continuing to research and write nonfiction books. His writings include four published books, several reference works, and hundreds of articles.

His early books included The Mysterious Sun (Putnam); How We Will Explore the Outer Planets (Putnam); and How Will We Feed the Hungry Billions? (Messner). He wrote Solar System, published in October 2002 by Weidenfeld & Nicolson (U.S. distributor Sterling Publishing), was a contributing author for The Science Book (Weidenfeld & Nicolson, September 2001), and is currently researching a book on the Reagan-era Strategic Defense Initiative.

At various times he worked for United Press International, created and edited the Bermuda News Pictorial, was promotion director for an electronics trade school in Utah, and served as an information officer during the launch of the Project Galileo spacecraft.

He lives with his teenaged son in the village of Los Ranchos de Albuquerque. Two older children, and his son-in-law and grandson, live in England. He has a degree in mass communications and is a member of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Association of British Science Writers, British Interplanetary Society, British Association for the Advancement of Science, and South West Writers. He is a life member of the U.S. National Association of Science Writers.

From the Inside Flap

The urge to map the solar system – and the cosmos beyond – lies deep in the roots of humankind. Our early ancestors kept time by observing the positions of the Sun and Moon, planted their crops in accordance with the Sun’s position in the sky, synchronized religious ceremonies with celestial events, and navigated by the stars.

The invention of the telescope brought us closer to the heavens, but only in the past 50 years have new technologies allowed us to properly explore our solar system. And we have discovered that our immediate neighborhood is stranger than we ever imagined. On Neptune, when it rains, it rains diamonds. On Jupiter winds reach speeds of 6,000 mph and storms rage for centuries. Venus has been viewed as "a planet-wide catastrophe." Saturn, in addition to its rings, has at least 30 moons. In addition to these peculiarities, it now appears that the solar system harbors life not only on Earth, but potentially on Mars as well as the moons of Jupiter and Saturn.

As our exploration of the solar system gathers momentum, this book explores what we have discovered already, what we might discover next, and explores the technologies, from telescopes to robot probes, which gather this information.

Nigel Hey is a former senior administrator at Sandia National Laboratories, one of the USA’s largest scientific institutions. He sold his first short story to the BBC at the age of 11, and now writes primarily about science and science policy for the national and international media. A contributing author for The Science Book, he is also the author of three previously published books and the editor of several reference works. He is a member of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the Association of British Science Writers. Among numerous other jobs, he served as an information officer during the launch of the Project Galileo spacecraft.

Edition details

• Publisher: Weidenfeld & Nicolson Ltd
• Publication date: 2002
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0304359947
• ISBN 13: 9780304359943
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 192