Books - William Herschel

Product Description:
Responsible for the greatest advances in astronomy since Copernicus, William and Caroline Herschel forever transformed our view of the heavens. Trained as a musician, amateur scientist William Herschel found international fame after discovering the planet Uranus in 1781. Though he is still best known for this finding, his partnership with his sister Caroline yielded groundbreaking work, including techniques that remain in use today. The duo pioneered comprehensive surveys of the night sky, carefully categorizing every visible object in the void. Caroline wrote an influential catalogue of nebulae, and William discovered infrared radiation. Celebrated science writer Michael Lemonick guides readers through the depths of the solar system and into his protagonists' private lives: William developed bizarre theories about inhabitants of the sun; he procured an unheard-of salary for Caroline even while haggling with King George III over the funding for an enormous, forty-foot telescope; the siblings feuded over William's marriage and eventually reconciled. Erudite and accessible, The Georgian Star is a lively portrait of the pair who invented modern astronomy. 9 illustrations.



Customer Review: The Georgian Star, by Michael Lemonick:
The Georgian Star, by Michael Lemonick, is the biography of William Herschel and his sister Caroline Herschel. In 1781, William Herschel discovered the planet Uranus. As Lemonick points out, this made Herschel the first discoverer of a planet, since Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn had been visible and known to anyone who cared to look up at the night sky for all of human history.

Herschel became more and more interested in astronomy. He bought books on the subject, studied the heavens through telescopes, and began making his own telescopes. With Caroline's help, he began spending every free minute, day and night, on astronomy. He invented the technique of making repeated sweeps of the entire night sky, cataloguing everything he found. In the midst of it all, he came upon the new planet. We call this planet Uranus, but at the time, Herschel's science colleagues urged him to name the planet for King George III. In this way, Herschel earned the King's favor and was freed at last from having to make a living with music.

Throughout The Georgian Star, Mike Lemonick quotes from Caroline Herschel's wry, humorous diary about her brother's frenetic days and nights, and about her own award-winning contributions. William Herschel discovered more than 2000 nebulae, hundreds of paired stars, and infra-red radiation. He tracked the direction of the migration of our Solar System through the Milky Way, and realized that starlight we presently see has taken so long to reach us, the stars whose light it is might well have burned out by now.

The Georgian Star combines science, history, and human interest so beautifully, we are sorry to come to the end of the book


Customer Review: Fascinating...:
The Georgian Star: How William and Caroline Herschel Revolutionized Our Understanding of the Cosmos by Michael D. Lemonick is a fascinating look at two astronomers who are little known but have made tremendous contributions to our understanding of astronomy.

In the 1700s, William and Caroline Herschel were born into a Germany family of talented musicians. William ended up in England (easy to do as George III of England was also the Elector of Hanover). He then smuggled his sister over when their mother refused to let her leave Germany (mother Anna did not want to lose Caroline's domestic services). Both siblings were professional musicians. Caroline was a singer, while William served as organist, choir master, composer and instrumentalist in various English churches. But both William and Caroline became fascinated by astronomy and began on a course to study the cosmos. In addition, he began building his own telescopes--which happened to be much stronger than those being used by professionals. William wasn't taken very seriously at first, but eventually earned the respect of professional scientists of the day. He was even awarded a pension by George III, which allowed him to quit music forever and focus all his energies on stargazing.

During his long life, William made many discoveries--including the planet, Uranus, as well as the existence of infrared radiation. His sister also made a number of discoveries (mostly comets) but was especially talented in organizing and cataloguing "all of the 2500 nebulae and star clusters she and William had discovered." Her efforts also earned her a pension from the king.

I find the study of astronomy fascinating, although if it gets too technical, my eyes begin to glaze over. The Georgian Star was the perfect book in explaining much about our knowledge of astronomy, but in an understandable way. Lemonick also explains how the work done by both William and Caroline is still relevant today.


Customer Review: excellent book:
Fast delivery and excellent customer service (when I made a mistake on shipping - it was handled with exceptional customer service on Amazon's end) I have been shopping from Amazon for over 3 years and highly recommend them. This book also very insightful and good reading

Customer Review: Interesting Story:
The "Great Discoveries" series books are short and enjoyable; this volume is no exception. The Herschel story is fascinating, and well told. I had no idea of the extent of William and Caroline's contributions to astronomy and cosmology prior to reading it. The Bibliography lists several books that are hard to find, making this book an important contribution.

Product Description:

In September of 1859, the entire Earth was engulfed in a gigantic cloud of seething gas, and a blood-red aurora erupted across the planet from the poles to the tropics. Around the world, telegraph systems crashed, machines burst into flames, and electric shocks rendered operators unconscious. Compasses and other sensitive instruments reeled as if struck by a massive magnetic fist. For the first time, people began to suspect that the Earth was not isolated from the rest of the universe. However, nobody knew what could have released such strange forces upon the Earth--nobody, that is, except the amateur English astronomer Richard Carrington.

In this riveting account, Stuart Clark tells for the first time the full story behind Carrington's observations of a mysterious explosion on the surface of the Sun and how his brilliant insight--that the Sun's magnetism directly influences the Earth--helped to usher in the modern era of astronomy. Clark vividly brings to life the scientists who roundly rejected the significance of Carrington's discovery of solar flares, as well as those who took up his struggle to prove the notion that the Earth could be touched by influences from space. Clark also reveals new details about the sordid scandal that destroyed Carrington's reputation and led him from the highest echelons of science to the very lowest reaches of love, villainy, and revenge.

The Sun Kings transports us back to Victorian England, into the very heart of the great nineteenth-century scientific controversy about the Sun's hidden influence over our planet.

Customer Review: The author is brilliant and this work should be required reading for any who are concerned about EMP:
Before going into any details I must congratulate the author of this work for his expectional writing style and brilliant research.

This book is of particular interest to me because I'm an historian with a specialization in the history of technology and the author of "One Second After," a novel about the impact of an EMP (electro-magnetic pulse) event. Up front I pray that "The Sun Kings" will get the recognition it deserves and wind up on the best seller list. EMP is not only a potential miitary threat, it is also a potential natural/environmental threat that could cripple our country.

It was not until after my novel was released in March 2009 that I heard of the "Carrington Event." A friend, having read "The Sun Kings" insisted I read it. Read it? I devoured the book in one sitting. Not only did it open my eyes to other aspects of EMP, I was compelled to turn page after page because of the author's brilliant, well written and even witty delivery. He is an exceptional author who truly brings a fascinating and all but unknown field of history alive. (His footnote on a 19th century test, using chickens to test the velocity of tornadoes is hysterical, even though those of us who lean towards PETA will cringe!)

If you are interested in the history of technology read this book. Astronomy, read this book. National security in the face of potential EMP scenarios, definitely read this book! I now recommend it to any who will listen.

I hope someday I can meet the author, it will be an honor to shake his hand. He is a great historian, he is also an author who through a fascinating tale raises an issue of deep concern to all of us. Another solar cycle is upon us (and please spare me any Mayan Prophecy foolishness!) and our delicate electrical/electronic infrastructure is at risk. There are numerous reasons to read this book and one of the better ones beside all the issues I am concerned about with EMP. . .it is above all else a magnificent and highly informative experience.

Most sincerely,

William R. Forstchen Ph.D.
author of "One Second After"

Customer Review: Scientists as People:
Of all the objects in our sky, the sun is undoubtedly the most important. Without it, our little planet would be a lifeless ball of ice. But the sun's importance means that when something is stirring on the sun, things on earth change, from our weather to our ability to communicate over long distances. This book is about how astronomy, which had been interested mostly in the stars, became interested in our closest star.

The author does an excellent job of blending science with the often quirky lives of those who make science, along with the culture out of which science comes. In this case, the culture is that of mid-nineteenth century Britain, a society in which even a self-taught amateur such as Richard Carrington could become a well-respected astronomer.

Given the author's success with this book and at portraying scientists and people rather than icons, I can only hope he next takes up the equally fascinating and controversy-filled development of quantum mechanics in the early twentieth century.

--Michael W. Perry, editor of Eugenics and Other Evils : An Argument Against the Scientifically Organized State

Customer Review: The Sun Kings:
I read about The Sun Kings in the Smithonian Aviation magazine. For anyone wondering about the history of our sun, this is a must read. You might think that this is dry reading but not so. It delves into the lives of many famous people who made astounding discoveries about the sun. A very interesting book. Jack Main

Customer Review: An Good Introduction to the History of Solar Astrophysics:
In his book, The Sun Kings, author Stuart Clark introduces the reader to both the early history of solar astronomy and astrophysics and the reasons why such studies are important today. Clark begins by telling of the events near September 1st, 1859 in which the Earth was bombarded by a huge solar storm. While the effects of this storm were readily observed around the planet, only one person seems to have witnessed the cause, a huge solar flare on the Sun's surface. This man, Richard Carrington, forms the the central figure of Clark's narrative but he is not the only scientist who contributes to the story. Along the way we meet William Herschel and his son John, Warren de la Rue, George Airy, George Ellery Hale and a number of other figures whose work will gradually shed light on (pun intended) the murky physical connections between our world and the star it circles.

As is often the case in biographical sketches of a scientist's work, the story begins before Carrington's contributions and continues after he meets his tragic end in what be seen as a mid-life crisis gone horribly wrong. In this sense, while Carrington may seem like the subject of the book, the bigger theme is how humans came to understand anything at all about an object that could not be touched, sampled or controlled. In presenting this, Stuart does a good job of describing the science and the culture in which it took place without getting bogged down in the technicalities of the work. By presenting the material first with a pair of near catastrophic events, the author engages the reader and then holds on by revealing the events and personalities that shaped the work done. Gone is the sort of inevitable march towards knowledge approach that many simple treatments of scientific topics use. This is replaced by a better tale of false starts, professional (and sometimes personal) disputes and rivalries along with the triumphs and collaborations that are part and parcel of scientific inquiry.

The only quibble I have is that Carrington's personal story is left a bit undeveloped as compared to the larger scientific theme. I would have liked a bit more discussion of the tradition of the British "Gentleman Scientist" and certainly a deeper analysis of Carrington himself as well as some of his actions. Much of this may be lacking due to a dearth of sources available to the author however and I certainly can not find fault with showing restraint and speculating if that is the case. This is a relatively minor quibble. A bit more serious is the lack of a good explanation of why the Sun has a magnetic field and why is acts in the way it does. It seems that if the author can find a way to simply explain differential rotation as he does, more effort could be put into discussing a bit more of the physics behind the observed phenomena.

I strongly recommend this book to anyone seeking a better understanding of the Sun, the history and culture of science or the process of scientific inquiry. Those wanting to know more about how the Sun works might be well served by checking out an astronomy textbook from their local library to supplement the material included here.

Customer Review: A Rare Combination:
It isn't often one finds a book offering readable science along with fascinating portraits of scientists. THE SUN KINGS is an exception that does a truly commendable job of exploring the explosive nature of 19th Century astronomy and the idiosyncrasies of its practitioners. Reginald Carrington's meticulous solar observations and his discovery of solar flares and their effect on the earth are the book's major theme. But there is much more in it about the astronomical greats of that age. The Herschels (father and son), Humboldt, Hale, as well as others whose names have survived attached to various phenomena such as Bode's law, Fraunhofer lines, and the Maunder Minimum figure prominently in these pages. Clark has also sprinkled the tale with intriguing anecdotes--the meteorologist who fired dead chickens from a cannon to test the often-repeated story that tornados had stripped chickens of their feathers, the telegrapher who turned off his batteries during an aurora borealis and powered his line with the magnetic field created during the display, and the first improvised solar cooker, used to fry an egg. The 1860 total eclipse expedition with its first photograph of the event is alone worth the price of the book. Add to that the depiction of the savage infighting among the scientists of that day and the difficulties faced by amateurs and women as they were grudgingly allowed into the sacred circle of academic astronomers--these make current fracases in that field seem minor by comparison. From it all, however, emerged what seems to be a truism today, but a truly major scientific discovery--the relationship of the sun's pulsing heartbeat to events here on earth, springing in large measure from Carrington's observation of a magnificent solar flare.

Product Description:

Amateur astronomers – particularly deep-sky observers – are always on the lookout for new observing challenges. The Herschel Objects, and How to Observe Them offers the exciting opportunity of retracing the steps of the greatest visual observer and celestial explorer that ever lived. This is a practical guide to seeing the most impressive of Herschel’s star clusters, nebulae and galaxies.

There has never been – and as of the time of submitting this proposal there still isn’t – an observer’s book devoted to the Herschel objects. The US-based Astronomical League has for several years sponsored a "Herschel Club", reflecting the interest amateur astronomers have in this important but less widely known listing. The Herschel Objects, and How to Observe Them covers more than 600 of the brightest of the objects that Herschel saw, with detailed descriptions and images of 150 to 200 of the very best for viewing with amateur telescopes.

Customer Review: great:
great product.... as an amateur astronomer is good to have a nice guide to everything thats important

Product Description:
Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: 53 CHAPTER III. THE EXPLORER OF THE HEAVENS. " A Knowledge of the construction of the heavens," Herschel wrote in 1811, " has always been the ultimate object of my observations." The " Construction of the Heavens"! A phrase of profound and novel import, for the invention of which he was ridiculed by Brougham in the Edinburgh Review; yet expressing, as it had never been expressed before, the essential idea of sidereal astronomy. Speculation there had been as to the manner in which the stars were grouped together ; but the touchstone of reality had yet to be applied to them. This unattempted, and all but impossible enterprise Herschel deliberately undertook. It presented itself spontaneously to his mind as worth the expenditure of a life's labour ; and he spared nothing in the disbursement. The hope of its accomplishment inspired his early exertions, carried him through innumerable difficulties, lent him audacity, fortified him in perseverance. For this, " He left behind the painted buoy That tosses at the harbour's mouth," and burst his way into an unnavigated ocean. Herschel has had very few equals in his strength of controlled imagination. He held the balance, even to a nicety, between the real and the ideal. Meditation served in him to prescribe and guide experience; experience to ripen the fruit of meditation. " We ought/' he wrote in 1785, " to avoid two opposite extremes. If we indulge a fanciful imagination, and build worlds of our own, we must not wonder at our going wide from the path of truth and nature. On the other hand, if we add observation to observation without attempting to draw, not only certain conclusions, but also conjectural views from them, we offend against the very end for which only observations ought to be made." This was consis...



Customer Review: The Kessinger Reprint:
While this edition includes the full text of the original,
the three portraits of William, Caroline and John are
missing. Further, it reproduces pages with a few underlined
phrases and some illegible notes.

These imperfections are a small price to pay to have a
bound personal copy of this well-crafted biographical
history.

My local library continues to lend a copy which is over
100 years old. It would be a pity if this title became
unavailable to readers interested in astronomical history.

Product Description:
This digital document is an article from Science and Its Times, brought to you by Gale®, a part of Cengage Learning, a world leader in e-research and educational publishing for libraries, schools and businesses. The length of the article is 1751 words. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser. The histories of science, technology, and mathematics merge with the study of humanities and social science in this interdisciplinary reference work. Essays on people, theories, discoveries, and concepts are combined with overviews, bibliographies of primary documents, and chronological elements to offer students a fascinating way to understand the impact of science on the course of human history and how science affects everyday life. Entries represent people and developments throughout the world, from about 2000 B.C. through the end of the twentieth century.

Product Description:
This digital document, covering the life and work of (William) (Herschel Kean) Gerald Seymour, is an entry from Contemporary Authors, a reference volume published by Thompson Gale. The length of the entry is 2098 words. The page length listed above is based on a typical 300-word page. Although the exact content of each entry from this volume can vary, typical entries include the following information:

• Place and date of birth and death (if deceased)
• Family members
• Education
• Professional associations and honors
• Employment
• Writings, including books and periodicals
• A description of the author's work
• References to further readings about the author

Product Description:
This volume provides for the first time summaries, descriptions, and documentation for 14,815 letters written by or sent to Sir John Herschel (1792-1871). Herschel's numerous contributions to astronomy as well as to mathematics, physics, chemistry (especially photochemistry and photography), meteorology, philosophy of science, and scientific organization, led his British contemporaries to regard him as the most prominent scientist of his era. Because Herschel corresponded on a remarkable array of topics and with leading figures both in Britain and beyond, this volume gives scholars access to a wealth of revealing new information. The many new uses of the volume are enhanced by its Biographical Register, which indentifies about 1500 of Herschel's correspondents, and its Index, which supplies 30,000 references. This volume is far and away the most extensive source of information on John Herschel ever published. Also included are bibliographies of Herschel's publications and of publications on him.