Part B of Planetary Astronomy from the Renaissance to the Rise of Astrophysics is the sequel to Part A and continues the history of celestial mechanics and observational discovery through the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Twelve different authors have contributed their expertise in some eighteen chapters, each of them intended to be accessible to the interested layman. An initial section deals with stages in the reception of Newton's inverse square law as exact. In the remainder of the book 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 – a topic rarely treated, at once synoptically and in some detail. Lists of further reading provide entrée to the literature of these several topics.
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Review of the hardback: '... this is a very comprehensive and high quality work on the history of astronomy ... This series will be a very interesting collection for everybody, scientist, student and amateur, who is interested in the general history of astronomy.' Reviews of Astronomical Tools
Review of the hardback: 'This book illustrates perfectly the skill of the modern astronomical historian. The list of editors and authors reads like a who's who in the subject and the 17 essays provide an excellent secondary source.' Carole Stott, New Scientist
Review of the hardback: '... when read as an historical introduction to the study of the subject this book could provide the background necessary to fully understand advanced and modern celestial mechanics.' Irish Astronomical Journal
Review of the hardback: '... all of the chapters are of a high scholarly standard and one feels that the authors have done their best to make their material accessible without too much recourse to mathematics, which is no mean achievement when writing a history of celestial mechanics.' Allan Chapman, Endeavour
Review of the hardback: 'This is a scholarly and well-produced book.' Alan Chapman, Webb Society Reviews
Part B covers the history of planetary astronomy in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. It provides a synoptic view of the main developments and at the same time furnishes much detail about the lives, ideas, mathematical techniques and interactions of the various astronomers involved.
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Seller: Midway Book Store (ABAA), St. Paul, MN, U.S.A.
Hardcover. First edition. 25.5 x 19 cm. Royal octavo. 281pp. Black cloth in dust jacket. Previous owner's bookplate on front fixed endpaper. Light toning to page edges. Volume 2B of The General History of Astronomy. Very Good in Very Good dust jacket. Seller Inventory # 67358
Seller: Jeff Weber Rare Books, Neuchatel, NEUCH, Switzerland
Royal 8vo. xiii, [1], 281, [1] pp. Illus., index. Black gilt-stamped cloth, dust-jacket. Near fine. ISBN: 0521351685 Hardcover issue. 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 Poincare. 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 entry to the literature of the several topics. This book will be of great interest to historians of science and astronomers." TABLE OF CONTENTS: Part V. Early Phases in the Reception of Newton's Theory: 14. The vortex theory in competition with Newtonian celestial dynamics Eric J. Aiton / 15. The shape of the Earth Seymour L. Chapin / 16. Clairaut and the motion of the lunar apse: The inverse-square law undergoes a test Craig B. Waff / 17. The precession of the equinoxes from Newton to d'Alembert and Euler Curtis Wilson / 18. The solar tables of Lacaille and the lunar tables of Mayer Eric G. Forbes and Curtis Wilson / 19. Predicting the mid-eighteenth-century return of Halley's Comet Craig B. Waff. Part VI. Celestial Mechanics During the Eighteenth Century: 20. The problem of perturbation analytically treated: Euler, Clairaut, d'Alembert Curtis Wilson / 21. The work of Lagrange in celestial mechanics Curtis Wilson / 22. Laplace Bruno Morando. Part VII. Observational Astronomy and the Application of Theory in the Late Eighteenth and Early Nineteenth Century: / 23. Measuring solar parallax: The Venus transits of 1761 and 1769 and their nineteenthâ"century sequels Albert Van Helden / 24. The discovery of Uranus, the Titius-Bode and the asteroids Michael Hoskin / 25. Eighteenthâ"and nineteenth century developments in the theory and practice of orbit determination Brian G. Marsden / 26. The introduction of statistical reasoning into astronomy: from Newton to Poincare Oscar Sheynin / 27. Astronomy and the theory of errors: from the method of averages to the method of least squares F. Schmeidler. Part VIII. The Development of Theory During the Nineteenth Century: / 28. The golden age of celestial mechanics Bruno Morando. Part IX. The Application of Celestial Mechanics to the Solar System to the End of the Nineteenth Century: / 29. Three centuries of lunar and planetary ephemerides and tables Bruno Morando / 30. Satellite ephemerides to 1900 Yoshihide Kozai. Seller Inventory # S13588
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: HPB-Red, Dallas, TX, U.S.A.
hardcover. Condition: Good. Connecting readers with great books since 1972! Used textbooks may not include companion materials such as access codes, etc. May have some wear or writing/highlighting. We ship orders daily and Customer Service is our top priority! Seller Inventory # S_414876654
Seller: The Spoken Word, Oxfordshire, United Kingdom
Hardcover. Condition: Very Good. Dust Jacket Condition: Near Fine. 1st Edition. Published by Cambridge University Press in 1989 and 1995 respectively, here are the first hardback printings of Planetary Astronomy from the Renaissance to the Rise of Astrophysics (The General History of Astronomy Series)complete in 2 volumes edited by Rene Taton and Curtis Wilson. Volume 1 Part 2A Tycho Brahe to Newton Published 1989. Black cloth binding, gilt spine lettering, 274 superbly illustrated pages plus a glossary of technical terms and an index the book is in very good plus condition with the merest hint of a spine slant. The dust jacket is in near fine condition. Volume 2: Part 2B The Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries. Published 195. Black cloth binding, gilt spine lettering, 269 superbly illustrated pages, sources plus an additional combined index for both volumes, the book is in very good condition with a spine slant to the top of the spine. The dust jacket is near fine. Both volumes together weigh in excess of 2 kgs when properly wrapped and therefore additional postage MUST be applied to areas OUTSIDE the UK as follows: Europe £5, Rest of the World £8. UK postage is as quoted. Seller Inventory # 13488
Quantity: 1 available