Is Pluto a Planet?: A Historical Journey through the Solar System - Hardcover

Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

David A. Weintraub is Professor of Astronomy at Vanderbilt University, which in 2003 honored him with the Jeffrey Nordhaus Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching.

Von der hinteren Coverseite

"No matter which side of the debate you find yourself on, Is Pluto a Planet? will equip you with all the information you need to win your argument. And along the way, David Weintraub treats you to a fascinating tour of the past, present, and future of our attempts to understand the solar system and our place within it."--Neil deGrasse Tyson, Astrophysicist at the American Museum of Natural History and Director of the Hayden Planetarium, New York City

"Is Pluto a planet? Sure it is. But is it a major planet like Mars and Jupiter, or is that distant tiny body more in league with Ceres, long ago catalogued as the first and largest of the minor planets? What degree of 'planethood' should be conferred on an object orbiting a star--too small to be a star itself, yet big enough to be round? With these stimulating questions (and more) in mind, I fully support Weintraub's conclusion that our youngsters get short shrift by learning only a simple mnemonic aid when introduced to the planets around our sun."--Brian G. Marsden, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics

"David Weintraub tells a coherent tale with an ingenious story line. Well written and convincingly presented, Is Pluto a Planet? will appeal widely to general readers. It covers a topic that has exploded in the past decade, but I do not know of any other popular account of the outer solar system."--Owen Gingerich, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, author ofThe Book Nobody Read: Chasing the Revolutions of Nicolaus Copernicus

"General readers interested in the Pluto controversy will find much of interest in this book, which shows how the concept of 'planet' has evolved throughout history. As a professional interested in this topic, I found the historical narrative quite illuminating and useful."--Gibor Basri, University of California, Berkeley and Co-Investigator, NASA's Kepler Mission

Aus dem Klappentext

"No matter which side of the debate you find yourself on, Is Pluto a Planet? will equip you with all the information you need to win your argument. And along the way, David Weintraub treats you to a fascinating tour of the past, present, and future of our attempts to understand the solar system and our place within it."--Neil deGrasse Tyson, Astrophysicist at the American Museum of Natural History and Director of the Hayden Planetarium, New York City

"Is Pluto a planet? Sure it is. But is it a major planet like Mars and Jupiter, or is that distant tiny body more in league with Ceres, long ago catalogued as the first and largest of the minor planets? What degree of 'planethood' should be conferred on an object orbiting a star--too small to be a star itself, yet big enough to be round? With these stimulating questions (and more) in mind, I fully support Weintraub's conclusion that our youngsters get short shrift by learning only a simple mnemonic aid when introduced to the planets around our sun."--Brian G. Marsden, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics

"David Weintraub tells a coherent tale with an ingenious story line. Well written and convincingly presented, Is Pluto a Planet? will appeal widely to general readers. It covers a topic that has exploded in the past decade, but I do not know of any other popular account of the outer solar system."--Owen Gingerich, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, author ofThe Book Nobody Read: Chasing the Revolutions of Nicolaus Copernicus

"General readers interested in the Pluto controversy will find much of interest in this book, which shows how the concept of 'planet' has evolved throughout history. As a professional interested in this topic, I found the historical narrative quite illuminating and useful."--Gibor Basri, University of California, Berkeley and Co-Investigator, NASA's Kepler Mission