The Story of Astronomy (37 page)

solar parallax,
123
–4

Solovine, Maurice,
212

solstices, precession of,
42

Sosigenes,
41

South, James,
189
–90

space exploration,
305
–25

spectrographs,
205

spectroscopy,
205
–6,
231
–3

spiral nebulae,
231
–4,
237
–8

Spirit
rover,
309

Spitzer Space Telescope,
322
–3

Sputnik I
,
305

stars

ancients' understanding of movements,
47
,
48

binary,
181
–2,
189
–91,
273

birth,
245
–6,
339
,
346

death,
252
–8

distribution in sky,
186
–7,
189
–91

and element formation,
253
,
254
,
256
–7,
265
–9,
297
–8

escape velocities,
271

globular star clusters,
235
–6

Helvelius' maps,
127

magnitudes and positions,
36
–7,
57
,
86
–7,
200
–1,
204
–5,
229
–31,
341
–4

neutron stars,
257
,
264
–5

photographs,
204

spectral features,
205
–6,
231
–3

stellar parallax,
200
–1,
204
–5,
341

supernovae,
83
–4,
91
,
257
–8,
261
–9,
325

telescopes lead to discovery of many more,
102
–3

variable stars,
230
–1,
236
,
237
–8,
342

why they shine,
245
–7,
251
–2

see also individual stars by name

steady-state theory,
243
,
297
,
327
–9

stellar parallax,
200
–1,
204
–5,
341

Strabo,
33

Stukeley, William,
132

Sumerians,
16
–18

Sun

age,
202
,
246
–7

ancients' understanding of movements,
2
,
5
–10,
13
,
23
,
26
,
44
,
48

and Babylonians,
19

classification as star,
154

and Copernican cosmology,
71
–80,
104
–8

death,
252
–4

distance from Earth and size,
29
–30,
38
–40,
46
,
152
,
177

distance from planets,
94

gravitational effect on planets' orbits,
138
–45

position in Milky Way,
186
–7,
235
–6,
346

solar parallax,
123
–4

solar wind,
323

space observation of,
323

why it shines,
251
–2

worship,
14

see also
eclipses, solar; stars

supernovae,
83
–4,
91
,
257
–8,
261
–9,
325

Type 1a,
343
–4,
354

super-sphere,
285
–6

Tariq ibn Ziyad,
66

telescopes

Allen Telescope Array,
274
–5

Chandra,
322

Compton,
322

examples through history,
2

Hale,
237

Herschel's,
179
–81,
185
–6

Horrocks' poem about,
115

Hubble Space,
237
,
241
,
317
,
319
–22,
345

invention,
100
–1

Jodrell Bank,
261

Keck Telescopes,
321

Mount Wilson,
234
,
235

new techniques,
321

radio,
259
–63

reflecting,
131
,
179
–81

Spitzer Space,
322
–3

Tempel 1 (comet),
324
–5

tensor calculus,
224

Thales,
23

thermodynamics,
298
–9

3C 48 (star),
279

3C 273 (star),
279
,
280

tides,
10

time

and black holes,
277
,
278

and special theory of relativity,
213
,
215

time measurement

on board ship,
172
–6

and distance from equator,
169
–70

length of months,
42

and longitude calculation,
163
–76

origin of days of the week,
19

origin of minutes and seconds,
18

see also
calendars; clocks and watches

Titan,
316
–17,
364

Toledo,
59
,
65
–6

Tombaugh, Clyde,
318

Towneley, Richard,
152

trigonometry,
57

Triton,
317

Tully, Brent,
342

21-cm hydrogen line,
342
–3,
346
–7

Twin Quasar,
223

umbra,
28

uncertainty principle,
250

unified field theory,
333
–7

universe

age,
154
,
241
–2,
344
–5

expansion,
221
–2,
231
–2,
239
–43,
353
–7

“Great Debate,”
233
–4

infinity of,
154
–5,
353
–5

measuring,
340
–9

nature of,
285
–9

size,
187
–8,
200
–1,
231
–4,
237
–9

steady-state theory,
243
,
297
,
327
–9

structure,
344
–52

Uraniborg,
84
–6

uranium,
249

Uranus,
182
–4,
312
,
317
,
360
–1

Urban VIII, Pope (Cardinal Barberini),
104
,
105
,
106

Urey, Harold,
364

vacuum energy theory,
356

Venera
probes,
310

Venus

ancients' understanding of movements,
10

and Copernican cosmology,
77
,
78

death,
253

exploration,
310
–11

orbit and size,
119
–23

phases,
102

use to determine Earth–Sun distance,
177

Viking
missions,
307
–8

virtual particles,
300
–1

voids,
352

Vostok I
,
305
–6

Voyager
probes,
312
,
316
,
317

Wallis, John,
112
–13,
156

watches
see
clocks and watches

water hole,
274

Watzenrode, Lucas,
72
,
73

wave equation,
250

Whiston, William,
170
–1

white dwarfs,
254

Wickens, John,
129

Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy probe,
329

Willis, Roger,
173

Winteler, Jost,
211

wormholes,
279

Worthington, John,
113
,
119

Wren, Christopher,
138
–40,
165
–6

X-rays,
197
,
273
,
322
,
324

zero,
55

zodiac constellations,
12

Zwicky, Fritz,
223
,
349