Weird Astronomical Theories of the Solar System and Beyond

David Seargent (Autor)

Buch | Softcover

XIV, 270 Seiten

2016 | 1st ed. 2016
Springer International Publishing (Verlag)
978-3-319-25293-3 (ISBN)

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After addressing strange cosmological hypotheses in Weird Universe, David Seargent tackles the no-less bizarre theories closer to home. Alternate views on the Solar System's formation, comet composition, and the evolution of life on Earth are only some of the topics he addresses in this new work. Although these ideas exist on the fringe of mainstream astronomy, they can still shed light on the origins of life and the evolution of the planets. Continuing the author's series of books popularizing strange astronomy facts and knowledge, Weird Astronomical Theories presents an approachable exploration of the still mysterious questions about the origin of comets, the pattern of mass extinctions on Earth, and more. The alternative theories discussed here do not come from untrained amateurs. The scientists whose work is covered includes the mid-20th century Russian S. K. Vsekhsvyatskii, cosmologist Max Tegmark, British astronomers Victor Clube and William Napier, and American Tom Van Flandern, a specialist in celestial mechanics who held a variety of unusual beliefs about the possibility of intelligent life having come from elsewhere. Despite being outliers, their work reveals how much astronomical understanding is still evolving. Unconventional approaches have also pushed our scientific understanding for the better, as with R.W. Mandl's approaching Einstein with regard to gravitational lensing. Even without full substantiation (and some theories are hardly credible), their hypotheses allow for a new perspective on how the Solar System became what it is today.

David A. J. Seargent holds an MA and Ph.D., both in Philosophy from the University of Newcastle NSW, where he formerly worked as a tutor in Philosophy for the Department of Community of Programs/Worker’s Educational Association external education program. As an amateur astronomer, he is known for his observations of comets, one of which he discovered in 1978. He is the author of five astronomy books: “Comets – Vagabonds in Space” (Doubleday, 1982), “The Greatest Comets in History” (Springer, 2008), “Weird Astronomy” (Springer, 2010),“Weird Weather” (Springer, 2012), "Weird Worlds" (2013), and most recently "Weird Universe" (2015). He is the author of a regular column in “Australian Sky and Telescope” magazine.

Unconventional Theories of the Solar System.- Unconventional Comet Theories.- Astronomical Events Affecting Life on Earth.- Counter-Intuitive Cosmological Hypotheses.

"In his latest book, David Seargent (the Australian comet expert) dives into a host of strange and weird theoretical proposals associated with our Solar System. ... This is an extremely enjoyable and thought-provoking book." (David W. Hughes, The Observatory, Vol. 136 (1255), December, 2016)

Erscheinungsdatum	08.10.2016
Reihe/Serie	Astronomers' Universe
Zusatzinfo	XIV, 270 p. 43 illus., 32 illus. in color.
Verlagsort	Cham
Sprache	englisch
Maße	155 x 235 mm
Themenwelt	Sachbuch/Ratgeber ► Natur / Technik ► Weltraum / Astronomie
	Naturwissenschaften ► Biologie ► Evolution
	Naturwissenschaften ► Physik / Astronomie ► Astronomie / Astrophysik
Schlagworte	Astronomy, Astrophysics and Cosmology • Clube and Napier catastrophist hypothesis • Comets as electrical phenomena • evolutionary biology • Max Tegmark theory of math as universe structure • Physics and Astronomy • Popular Science in Astronomy • R Lyttleton and H Bondi electrical theory of cosmi • R Lyttleton and H Bondi electrical theory of cosmic redshift • R. Mandl "natural ray-gun" theory • R. Mandl “natural ray-gun” theory • S. K. Vsekhsvyatskii's comet theory • S. K. Vsekhsvyatskii’s comet theory • Van Flandern's solar system plasma theory • Van Flandern’s solar system plasma theory
ISBN-10	3-319-25293-3 / 3319252933
ISBN-13	978-3-319-25293-3 / 9783319252933
Zustand	Neuware