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Full Description
Written in 1877 by the French journalist Amédée Guillemin, this work appeared on British bookshelves at a time of intense interest in space, the solar system and stars. In the same year, Schiaparelli made his infamous 'discovery' of Martian canals, whetting the public's appetite for all things astronomical. Guillemin's account of comets was equally ambitious and, ultimately, more valuable. His subjects range from comet superstitions in Renaissance Italy to an accessible explanation of their orbits, constitution and brilliance. As James Glaisher notes in his Preface, 'there is no work that at all occupies the ground covered' by Guillemin. The author's imaginative prose, exemplified by his description of comets as 'long disowned stars', was translated sympathetically by Glaisher. Accompanied by eighty-five striking illustrations, including Halley's Comet as depicted in the Bayeux Tapestry, The World of Comets provides a fascinating insight into both astronomy and nineteenth-century scientific enquiry.
Contents
1. Beliefs and superstitions relative to comets; 2. Cometary astronomy up to the time of Newton; 3. The motions and orbits of comets; 4. Periodical comets; 5. Periodical comets; 6. The world of comets and cometary systems; 7. Physical and chemical constitution of comets; 8. Physical transformations of comets; 9. Mass and density of comets; 10. The light of comets; 11. Theory of cometary phenomena; 12. Comets and shooting stars; 13. Comets and the earth; 14. Physical influences of comets; 15. Some questions about comets; Tables.
