The Neptune File: Planet Detectives And the Discovery of Worlds Unseen (Penguin Press Science S.)

THE NEPTUNE FILE tells the dramatic story of the gifted Cornish mathematician John Couch Adams and the discovery of the planet Neptune in 1845. Combining scientific triumph with international controversy, pitting British intelligence against French wit, this is an intriguing tale of the search for an unknown planet and the uproar it caused. More than just an enthralling historical yarn, Tom Standage's story draws on recently discovered documents to reveal how two rival planet detectives pioneered a new way of seeing into space. It is a story that continues to unfold today, as astronomers discover dozens of new worlds orbiting other stars, and await the first direct observation of a planet beyond the solar system...