The Century of Space Science

One of the most attractive features of the young discipline of Space Science is that many of the original pioneers and key players involved are still available to describe their field. Hence, at this point in history we are in a unique position to gain first-hand insight into the field and its development. To this end, The Century of Space Science, a scholarly, authoritative, reference book presents a chapter-by-chapter retrospective of space science as studied in the 20th century. The level is academic and focuses on key discoveries, how these were arrived at, their scientific consequences and how these discoveries advanced the thoughts of the key players involved.

With over 90 world-class contributors, such as James Van Allen, Cornelis de Jager, Eugene Parker, Reimar Lüst, and Ernst Stuhlinger, and with a Foreword by Lodewijk Woltjer (past ESO Director General), this book will be immensely useful to readers in the fields of space science, astronomy, and the history of science. Both academic institutions and researchers will find that this major reference work makes an invaluable addition to their collection.

Contenu

Foreword; L. Woltjer. Introduction: 1. The Century of Space Science; J.A.M. Bleeker, J. Geiss, M. Huber. The Beginnings: 2. The Space Age and the Origin of Space Research; A. Russo. 3. Enabling Technology for Space Transportation; E. Stuhlinger. The Early Epoch of Space Science: 4. The Cosmic Radiation; J.A. Simpson. 5. Magnetospheric Physics; J.A. Van Allen. 6. Barium Cloud Experiments in the Upper Atmosphere; R. Lüst. 7. Alkali Metal Cloud Experiments in the Upper Atmosphere; J.-E. Blamont. 8. Early Solar Space Research; C. de Jager. 9. A History of the Solar Wind Concept; E.N. Parker. 10. The Terrestrial Planets at the Dawn of the Space Age; W.K. Hartmann. 11. The Moon before Apollo; J.R. Arnold. 12. From the Ionosphere to High Energy Astronomy: A Personal Experience; H. Friedman. 13. Early Ultraviolet Spectroscopy from Space; B.D. Savage. 14. The Early Days of Infrared Space Astronomy; M. Harwit. Fundamental Science in Space. Cosmology and Gravitational Physics: 15. Verification of General Relativity: Tests in the Solar System; K. Nordtvedt. 16. Verification of General Relativity: Strong Fields and Gravitational Waves; C.M. Will. 17. The Cosmological Constants; G.A. Tammann. 18. COBE, Dark Matter and Large-Scale Structure in the Universe; K.M. Górski, A.J. Banday. 19. The Origin of the Light Elements in the Early Universe; H. Reeves.20. Gravitational Lensing; J. Surdej, J.-F. Claeskens. Extragalactic Astronomy: 21. Clusters of Galaxies; R. Mushotzky. 22. Gamma-Ray Bursts; R.A.M.J. Wijers. 23. Quasars; M.S. Elvis. 24. Blazars; G. Ghisellini. 25. X-ray and Infrared Properties of Normal Galaxies; G. Fabbiano, M.F. Kessler. The Milky Way: 26. The Hot Part of the Interstellar Medium; S.L. Snowden. 27. Space-Borne Observations of the Lifecycle of Interstellar Gas and Dust; E.F. van Dishoeck, A.G.G.M. Tielens. 28. The Interstellar Medium of Our Galaxy; P.C. Frisch. 29. Galactic Cosmic Rays; F.B. McDonald, V.S. Ptuskin. 30. Stellar Populations and Dynamics in the Milky Way Galaxy; G.F. Gilmore. 31. Pulsars and Isolated Neutron Stars; W. Becker, G. Pavlov. 32. Evolutionary Concepts of Binaries with Compact Objects; E.P.J. van den Heuvel. 33. White Dwarf Binaries; P.A. Charles. 34. Low Mass X-Ray Binaries; J. van Paradijs, M. van der Klis. 35. High-mass X-ray Binaries; N.E. White. 36. Black-hole Binaries; Y. Tanaka. 37. The Formation of Stars and Protoplanetary Disks; C. Waelkens. 38. High-energy Radiation from Outer Stellar Atmospheres; R. Pallavicini. 39. Mass Loss from Stars; J.P. Cassinelli. 40. Planetary Nebulae; S.R. Pottasch. 41. Supernovae and Supernovae Remnants; H. Tsunemi. The Solar System: 42. Accele