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Why is the sky dark at night? The
answer to this ancient and celebrated riddle, says Edward Harrison, seems relatively
simple: the sun has set and is now shining on the other side of the earth. But
suppose we were space travelers and far from any star. Out in the depths of space
the heavens would be dark, even darker than the sky seen from the earth on cloudless
and moonless nights. For more than four centuries, astronomers and other investigators
have pondered the enigma of a dark sky and proposed many provocative but incorrect
answers. Darkness at Night eloquently describes the misleading trails of
inquiry and strange ideas that have abounded in the quest for a solution.
In tracing this story of discovery -- one of the most intriguing
in the history of science -- the astronomer and physicist Edward Harrison explores
the concept of infinite space, the structure and age of the universe, the nature
of light, and other subjects that once were so perplexing. He introduces a range
of stellar intellects, from Democritus in the ancient world to Digges in the reign
of Queen Elizabeth, followed by Kepler, Newton, Halley, Cheseaux, Olbers, Poe,
Kelvin, and Bondi. Harrison's style is engaging, incisive yet poetic, and his
strong grasp of history -- from the Greeks to the twenthieth century -- adds perspective,
depth, and scope to the narrative. Richly illustrated and annotated, this book
will delight and enlighten both the casual reader and the serious inquirer.
Edward Harrison, Distinguished Professor of Physics and Astronomy
at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, is author of the classic Cosmology:
The Science of the Universe and the award-winning Masks of the Universe.
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