Shoemaker by Levy: The Man Who Made an Impact - Hardcover

Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

David H. Levy has discovered twenty-one comets, eight of them using his own backyard telescope. Science Editor for Parade magazine, he also writes the monthly "Star Trails" column in Sky and Telescope. Levy is the author of many books relating to astronomy, from beginners' observing guides to such recent popular accounts as Comets: Creators and Destroyers. He has written two other scientific biographies: The Man Who Sold the Milky Way: A Biography of Bart Bok and Clyde Tombaugh: Discoverer of Planet Pluto. Levy's awards include an Emmy for his role in writing the 1997 Discovery Channel documentary Three Minutes to Impact.

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"A match made in the heavens. David Levy, the 'patron saint' of comet hunters, is uniquely qualified to write this definitive biography of Eugene Shoemaker, the renegade geologist who first figured out that Earth moves within a shooting gallery of asteroids and comets that intermittently plunge into Earth's surface and wreak global catastrophe upon this delicate assortment of molecules we call life."--Neil deGrasse Tyson, Director, Hayden Planetarium, Rose Center for Earth & Space

"Rarely can there have been a scientist held both in as much respect and in as much affection as Gene Shoemaker. And rarely can there have been a scientific story as inspirational as Gene's lonely and patient telescope search for comets and asteroids with his wife, Carolyn, and their friend David Levy. It was a fitting culmination to the Shoemaker legend when they discovered the spectacular train of comet fragments which crashed into Jupiter in 1994. No one is better suited to tell the story of Gene and Carolyn than David Levy, in this remarkable book."--Walter Alvarez, author of T. rex and the Crater of Doom (Princeton)

"Eugene Shoemaker was one of the leading planetary scientists since the field began half a century ago, and his life, which was fascinating indeed, should long be a topic of interest in the intellectual history of the twentieth century. As Shoemaker's collaborator in the discovery of the comet Shoemaker-Levy 9, David Levy is the preeminently qualified individual to write his biography. He has accomplished the task splendidly. This biography is comprehensive, balanced between personal vignettes and scientific work, well written, fun to read, and authoritative."--Clark R. Chapman, Institute Scientist, Southwest Research Institute

"One of this century's greatest scientists, Eugene Shoemaker practically invented the field of astrogeology, performing cutting edge research on terrestrial impact cratering right up to his untimely death. Only David Levy could have written such a lucid and personal biography of this man. Moreover, he provides excellent background material to help the general reader understand the evolution of the scientific theories to which Shoemaker contributed."--Paul W. Chodas, Research Scientist, Jet Propulsion Laboratory

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"A match made in the heavens. David Levy, the patron saint of comet hunters, is uniquely qualified to write this definitive biography of Eugene Shoemaker, the renegade geologist who first figured out that Earth moves within a shooting gallery of asteroids and comets that intermittently plunge into Earths surface and wreak global catastrophe upon this delicate assortment of molecules we call life."--Neil deGrasse Tyson, Director, Hayden Planetarium, Rose Center for Earth & Space

"Rarely can there have been a scientist held both in as much respect and in as much affection as Gene Shoemaker. And rarely can there have been a scientific story as inspirational as Genes lonely and patient telescope search for comets and asteroids with his wife, Carolyn, and their friend David Levy. It was a fitting culmination to the Shoemaker legend when they discovered the spectacular train of comet fragments which crashed into Jupiter in 1994. No one is better suited to tell the story of Gene and Carolyn than David Levy, in this remarkable book."--Walter Alvarez, author of T. rex and the Crater of Doom (Princeton)

"Eugene Shoemaker was one of the leading planetary scientists since the field began half a century ago, and his life, which was fascinating indeed, should long be a topic of interest in the intellectual history of the twentieth century. As Shoemakers collaborator in the discovery of the comet Shoemaker-Levy 9, David Levy is the preeminently qualified individual to write his biography. He has accomplished the task splendidly. This biography is comprehensive, balanced between personal vignettes and scientific work, well written, fun to read, and authoritative."--Clark R. Chapman, Institute Scientist, Southwest Research Institute

"One of this century's greatest scientists, Eugene Shoemaker practically invented the field of astrogeology, performing cutting edge research on terrestrial impact cratering right up to his untimely death. Only David Levy could have written such a lucid and personal biography of this man. Moreover, he provides excellent background material to help the general reader understand the evolution of the scientific theories to which Shoemaker contributed."--Paul W. Chodas, Research Scientist, Jet Propulsion Laboratory