Accidental Astronomy: How Random Discoveries Shape the Science of Space

Chris Lintott

ISBN 10: 1541605411 / ISBN 13: 9781541605411

Published by Basic Books, 2024

About this Item

2024. hardcover. . . . . . Books ship from the US and Ireland.

Seller Inventory # V9781541605411

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Accidental Astronomy: How Random Discoveries Shape the Science of Space
• Publisher: Basic Books
• Publication Date: 2024
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1541605411
• ISBN 13: 9781541605411
• Binding: Hardcover
• Condition: New

About this title

Synopsis

A "riveting real-life Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" (The Telegraph), told "with an engaging voice, a diverting sense of humor, and a humble awe for the wonders of the universe" (Wall Street Journal), shows why so much of astronomy comes down to looking up and lucking out

If you learn about the scientific method, you learn that first we hypothesize about something we’ve experienced, and then we look for more of it. This works well enough—but what if you are interested in studying a heretofore unknown comet or supernova? That is the essential problem of the astronomer: the most important discoveries happen without notice!  
  
Indeed, as Chris Lintott argues in Accidental Astronomy, luck defines astronomy. Lintott explores the ways in which happenstance shapes how we investigate the sky. To catch a glimpse of a comet, asteroid, or even a sign of alien life, we must be in the right place at the right time. And if we can’t be there, we must have a team of professionals and amateurs, across the globe, ready to spring into action at a moment’s—or a night’s—notice. For any astronomer, regardless of their experience or resources, the first step to discovery is the same: to stare at the sky and wait.  
  
A celebration of astronomy, stargazing, and cosmic discovery, Accidental Astronomy offers an irresistible window into how luck defines our knowledge of the skies.  

About the Author

Chris Lintott is a professor of astrophysics at the University of Oxford, after a stint at Adler Planetarium, Chicago, and the winner of the American Astronomical Society’s prestigious Beatrice M. Tinsley Prize. He is best known as co-presenter of the BBC’s long-running Sky at Night program. He is the author of The Crowd and the Cosmos and coauthor of Bang! He lives in Oxford, UK.