Planetary Astronomy from the Renaissance to the Rise of Astrophysics, Part A, Tycho Brahe to Newton

Planetary Astronomy from the Renaissance to the Rise of Astrophysics, Part A, Tycho Brahe to Newton
Author: R. Taton
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 310
Release: 2003-09-18
Genre: Science
ISBN: 9780521542050

The International Astronomical Union and the International Union for the History and Philosophy of Science have sponsored a major work on the history of astronomy, which the Press publishs are in four volumes, three of which will be divided into two parts. Publication commenced with volume 4, part A. The history of astronomy has never been tackled on this scale and depth and this major synthesis breaks wholly new ground. The individual chapters of each volume have been prepared by leading experts in every field of the history of astronomy.

The General History of Astronomy: Volume 2, Planetary Astronomy from the Renaissance to the Rise of Astrophysics

The General History of Astronomy: Volume 2, Planetary Astronomy from the Renaissance to the Rise of Astrophysics
Author: René Taton
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 0
Release: 1995-08-10
Genre: Science
ISBN: 9780521351683

Part B of Planetary Astronomy from the Renaissance to the Rise of Astrophysics continues the history of celestial mechanics and observational discovery through the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. It provides a synoptic view of the main developments and furnishes details about the lives, ideas, and interactions of the various astronomers involved. Twelve different authors have contributed their expertise to this book that begins with the reception of Newton's inverse-square law. In the remainder, a large place is given to the development of the mathematical theory of celestial mechanics from Clairaut and Euler to LeVerrier, Newcomb, Hill, and Poincaré. This emphasis is balanced by other chapters on observational discoveries and the rapprochement of observation and theory (for instance, the discovery of Uranus and the asteroids, use of Venus transits to refine solar parallax, introduction of the method of least squares, and the development of planetary and satellite ephemerides). Lists of "Further Reading" provide entrée to the literature of the several topics. This book will be of great interest to historians of science and astronomers.

The General History of Astronomy: Volume 2, Planetary Astronomy from the Renaissance to the Rise of Astrophysics

The General History of Astronomy: Volume 2, Planetary Astronomy from the Renaissance to the Rise of Astrophysics
Author: René Taton
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 295
Release: 1995-08-10
Genre: Science
ISBN: 9780521351683

Part B of Planetary Astronomy from the Renaissance to the Rise of Astrophysics continues the history of celestial mechanics and observational discovery through the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. It provides a synoptic view of the main developments and furnishes details about the lives, ideas, and interactions of the various astronomers involved. Twelve different authors have contributed their expertise to this book that begins with the reception of Newton's inverse-square law. In the remainder, a large place is given to the development of the mathematical theory of celestial mechanics from Clairaut and Euler to LeVerrier, Newcomb, Hill, and Poincaré. This emphasis is balanced by other chapters on observational discoveries and the rapprochement of observation and theory (for instance, the discovery of Uranus and the asteroids, use of Venus transits to refine solar parallax, introduction of the method of least squares, and the development of planetary and satellite ephemerides). Lists of "Further Reading" provide entrée to the literature of the several topics. This book will be of great interest to historians of science and astronomers.

History of Astronomy

History of Astronomy
Author: John Lankford
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 616
Release: 2013-03-07
Genre: History
ISBN: 1136508341

This Encyclopedia traces the history of the oldest science from the ancient world to the space age in over 300 entries by leading experts.

From Eudoxus to Einstein

From Eudoxus to Einstein
Author: C. M. Linton
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 530
Release: 2004-08-12
Genre: Science
ISBN: 1139453793

Since man first looked towards the heavens, a great deal of effort has been put into trying to predict and explain the motions of the sun, moon and planets. Developments in man's understanding have been closely linked to progress in the mathematical sciences. Whole new areas of mathematics, such as trigonometry, were developed to aid astronomical calculations, and on numerous occasions throughout history, breakthroughs in astronomy have only been possible because of progress in mathematics. This book describes the theories of planetary motion that have been developed through the ages, beginning with the homocentric spheres of Eudoxus and ending with Einstein's general theory of relativity. It emphasizes the interaction between progress in astronomy and in mathematics, showing how the two have been inextricably linked since Babylonian times. This valuable text is accessible to a wide audience, from amateur astronomers to professional historians of astronomy.

Newton and Empiricism

Newton and Empiricism
Author: Zvi Biener
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 385
Release: 2014-05-16
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 0199337101

This volume of original papers by a leading team of international scholars explores Isaac Newton's relation to a variety of empiricisms and empiricists. It includes studies of Newton's experimental methods in optics and their roots in Bacon and Boyle; Locke's and Hume's responses to Newton on the nature of matter, time, the structure of the sciences, and the limits of human inquiry. In addition it explores the use of Newtonian ideas in 18th-century pedagogy and the life sciences. Finally, it breaks new ground in analyzing the method of evidential reasoning heralded by the Principia, its nature, strength, and development in the subsequent three centuries of gravitational research. The volume will be of interest to historians of science and philosophy and philosophers interested in the nature of empiricism.