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The Story of Astrophysics in Five Revolutions

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0 of 1 copy available
Wait time: About 6 weeks
0 of 1 copy available
Wait time: About 6 weeks

A concise, elegant overview of how five of the most extraordinary moments of vision and intuition in science history forever transformed our understanding of the cosmos—and what we may yet discover in revolutions still to come.

When Neil Armstrong first set foot in the lunar dust, the Earth held its breath. That one small step forever changed our view of what was possible, sparking a dramatic expansion of humankind's cosmic awareness. When we gain a new perspective, a transformation begins, profoundly altering the understanding of the world our human experience had previously granted us.

In The Story of Astrophysics in Five Revolutions, astrophysicist Ersilia Vaudo explores five such turning points in the history of cosmology: Newton's realization that gravity governs the celestial world; Einstein's dual theories of relativity, linking space with time and gravity with acceleration; Hubble's revelation of an expanding, rather than static, universe; and the emergence of antiparticles from a mathematical equation and their implications for our cosmic evolution.

In poetic prose, Vaudo illuminates the key insights that have led us to where we stand now. At the same time, she urges us to look beyond—to be open to the transformative realizations yet to come in our ongoing quest to understand the extraordinary, and still largely mysterious, universe to which we belong.

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    • Library Journal

      March 1, 2025

      Astrophysicist Vaudo writes in an approachable tone and style, immediately inviting readers into realms far beyond the reach of space shuttles. With this illuminating book, Vaudo joins science communicators (including John Green) and scholars (including Katie Mack and Dr. Maggie Aderin-Pocock) who have increased the accessibility and intelligibility of the stories about the galaxy. Readers will find familiar tales and names of recognizable scientists such as Carl Sagan, and they'll also encounter careful explanations of the five revolutions that Vaudo suggests tell the story of astrophysics. The book simplifies the laws of physics in ways that invite readers to travel with her through explorations of gravity, the speed of light, the Big Bang, anti-matter, and much more, maintaining an effective balance between science and story throughout. VERDICT From casual viewers of The Big Bang Theory to knowledge-thirsty scientists, readers will appreciate this book's carefulness and complexity and Vaudo's passion for treating astrophysics (like every other body of knowledge) as an ever-evolving set of shifting reference points, like stars guiding them toward new beliefs, values, and technologies.--Emily Bowles

      Copyright 2025 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

    • Kirkus

      March 1, 2025
      A history of astrophysics, focused on a short list of fundamental discoveries. Vaudo's revolutions are familiar to most amateur followers of science. In chronological order, they are Isaac Newton's formulation of the law of gravity; Albert Einstein's theories of special and general relativity; Big Bang theory; and antimatter. Each of these discoveries is put in historical context, with some biographical data on the scientists who made the discoveries. The book also gives credit to the other, sometimes less famous, figures who contributed--often significantly--to the discoveries. This is especially true of the Big Bang and antimatter, which emerged from the work of several theorists and researchers. We learn about their professional rivalries, such as Newton's feuds with Robert Hooke. Readers will also appreciate the author's serving up a wealth of details related to the scientists or their discoveries--the presence of a chunk of wood from Newton's apple tree aboard the International Space Station, or the fact that the potassium in a banana may decay and create tiny amounts of antimatter. While it's nearly impossible to discuss ideas such as the existence of more than three dimensions without a certain amount of math, Vaudo manages to keep the equations from overwhelming the text. A concluding chapter speculates on what the next major breakthrough is likely to be. Vaudo suggests that the questions posed by dark matter and dark energy--which apparently make up far more of the universe than "normal" matter and energy--will provide the material for the next revolution. Until those issues are worked out, the current book provides as good an overview of the state of the science as any reader could wish for. A lively and up-to-date survey of the key ideas of astrophysics.

      COPYRIGHT(2025) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

    • Publisher's Weekly

      February 3, 2025
      Vaudo, chief diversity officer at the European Space Agency, debuts with an approachable chronicle of five pivotal moments that advanced scientific understanding of the cosmos. She explains that in 1687, Isaac Newton suggested the same “invisible hand” that causes apples to fall to Earth also governs the movement of celestial bodies, allowing astronomers to predict their trajectories with greater accuracy than ever before. Fast-forwarding to the early 20th century, Vaudo discusses how Albert Einstein kicked off two revolutions, first with his theory of special relativity, which showed that the speed of light is a fixed constant and that space and time dilate in tandem, and then with his theory of general relativity, which demonstrated the “equivalence between gravity and acceleration.” Elsewhere, Vaudo describes how astronomer Edwin Hubble’s 1929 discovery that the universe is expanding gave rise to the concept of the big bang, and how in the 1930s, British physicist Paul Dirac’s assertion of the existence of positrons (antimatter particles) that annihilate electrons upon contact raised still unanswered questions about how electrons came to outnumber positrons, enabling the formation of the observable universe. Vaudo makes the science accessible to lay readers, and offers a mind-bending conclusion that examines the possibility of parallel universes, 25 spatial dimensions, and other ideas on the frontiers of contemporary astrophysics. Armchair astronomers will be riveted.

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