Which history of astronomy book?

[michaelmorris]

I want to get a book on the history of astronomy, what would everyone recommend?

[Telrad]

Michael, I found this - 'The History of Astronomy' by Nigel Henbest

The History of Astronomy | Overstock.com

It might be what you're looking for?

[michaelmorris]

Michael, I found this - 'The History of Astronomy' by Nigel Henbest

The History of Astronomy | Overstock.com

It might be what you're looking for?

Thanks. Have you read it?

[inkpen]

I quite liked Kitty Ferguson's book:

Measuring the Universe: The Historical Quest to Quantify Space: Amazon.co.uk: Kitty Ferguson: Books

It covers a long period of time and chiefly explores how our knowledge of distances across the solar system and the universe developed. So it talks about Aristarchus, Galileo, Kepler and Copernicus right up to some modern thinkers such as Hawking. I found it highly interesting and logically presented.

[Pug]

The Age of Wonder: How the Romantic Generation Discovered the Beauty and Terror of Science: Amazon.co.uk: Richard Holmes: Books

Not strictly a history of astronomy, although the work of Herchel accounts for about a third of the book. Sets the scene for the enlightenment beautifully and is bloomin good read to boot.

[BinocularSky]

The two I wouldn't be without are:

Michael Hoskin: The Cambridge Concise History of Astronomy -- does exactly what it says on the tin.

Owen Gingerich: The Great Copernicus Chase and Other Adventures in Astronomical History: -- Gingerich is a superb writer and this has 36 stand-alone chapters, wonderful for a quick "dip-in".

[michaelmorris]

Thanks for the suggestions. In the end, I found Michael Hoskin's Cambridge Illustrated History of Astronomy for just £3.40 secondhand on Amazon - bargain!

[ollypenrice]

Thanks for the suggestions. In the end, I found Michael Hoskin's Cambridge Illustrated History of Astronomy for just £3.40 secondhand on Amazon - bargain!

It is authoratative and avoids the usual howlers like Copernicus fearing religious persecution.

If you get into the subject then the UCLAN course is first class. I loved it.

There are some great bigraphies, too. Anything by Donald Osterbrock (on Baader/Ritchey/etc) Gale Christianson on Hubble. Great lives.

ABEbooks is a place to trawl for second hand stuff if you haven't met it.

Olly

[BinocularSky]

I found Michael Hoskin's Cambridge Illustrated History of Astronomy for just £3.40

Good choice. Damn good book -- even better price!

[Martin-Devon]

I have the biography of Isaac Newton called "Never At Rest" by Richard Westfall. Over 800 pages, so very detailed, but a fascinating and extremely enjoyable read of astronomy, optics, mathematics and the interplay of personalities and politics in the 15th century - I highly recommend this (you can get it from Amazon).

[LMC]

A little dry, but very informative and detailed is:

"The Sleepwalkers" by Arthur Koestler

And of course:

"Cosmos" by Carl Sagan. The first bit is an excellent potted history of Astronomy from ancient times. He even has a good 'ole go at Plato!

[michaelmorris]

ABEbooks is a place to trawl for second hand stuff if you haven't met it.

My only criticism I have of ABE (and Alibris) is the high postal charges. I find that many of the books on ABE or Alibris are availiable from the same source on Amazon for much lower postage charges.

[solo]

Cosmos-Carl Sagan.

[ollypenrice]

A little dry, but very informative and detailed is:

"The Sleepwalkers" by Arthur Koestler

And of course:

"Cosmos" by Carl Sagan. The first bit is an excellent potted history of Astronomy from ancient times. He even has a good 'ole go at Plato!

I agree about Koestler. His argument runs counter to that of Allan Chapman, a great guy, but I have to say that Koestler strikes me as being onto something.

Olly

[Bulkins]

The weather has also caused me to search out some reading material...

These three books came highly recommended by David Levy in his book "The Sky: A Users Guide". They are not histories in the "From the Ancient Greeks to the Modern Day" sense but are classed by Levy as "Historical" in the resources section of his book.

The Astronomical Scrapbrook, Joseph Ashbrook. The current Amazon UK price for the 2009 paperback edition is £51.30! I've ordered a 2nd hand 1985 hardback edition for very substantially less. According to Levy this is "A treasure of astronomical stories of both scientific and human interest."

Starlight Nights: The Adventures of a Stargazer. Leslie Peltier. Looks to be out of print. Prices from Amazon resellers range from £40 - £85 so this one will have to wait. Levy describes this as an "Exquisite book... no other book captures so well the basic feeling of what it is like to be an observer".

First Light: The Search for the Edge of the Universe. Richard Preston. To quote Levy again, "A wonderful adventure story including little known insights into astronomers past and present, and generally related to Palomar Mountain Observatory". Again, appears to be out of print but can be had for pennies 2nd hand from Amazon resellers (I've got one on order).

I'd be happy to give an opinion once I've read the two I've ordered but I suspect a recommendation from David Levy will be good enough for most.

[BinocularSky]

The Astronomical Scrapbrook, Joseph Ashbrook. The current Amazon UK price for the 2009 paperback edition is £51.30! I've ordered a 2nd hand 1985 hardback edition for very substantially less. According to Levy this is "A treasure of astronomical stories of both scientific and human interest."

I have that book -- I concur with Levy's comment.

[meteoriot]

Big bang by Simon Singh

Horrible cover, unimaginative title but the contents are fantastic. A history of astronomy and how we got where we are today. I would recommend this to anyone and my local observatory even do a course which is partly based around this book. A very well written, detailed, fascinating , informative and entertaining book.

Richard