Rejuvenating the Sun and Avoiding Other Global Catastrophes

2008
ISBN: 978-0-387-68128-3
Verlag: Springer

Buch, Englisch, 228 Seiten, Format (B × H): 155 mm x 235 mm, Gewicht: 371 g

Reihe: Astronomers' Universe

The book details a method that just might be able to stop the Sun from losing its power and, ultimately, save humanity and the Earth itself. It investigates the idea that the distant future evolution of our Sun might be controlled (or asteroengineered) so that it maintains its present-day energy output rather than becoming a bloated red giant star: a process that would destroy all life on Earth. Starting with the ideas currently being promoted for planetary defense against impacting comets and asteroids, the book considers other, more distant, astronomical phenomena (supernova explosions, close passing ‘rogue’ stars, and gamma-ray bursts) that pose a long-term threat to life on Earth. It also outlines how asteroengineering might work in principle and describes what the future solar system could look like. It also addresses the idea of asteroengineering as a galaxy-wide imperative, explaining why the Earth has never been visited by extraterrestrial travelers in the past.

Zielgruppe

Professional/practitioner

Autoren/Hrsg.

Beech, Martin

Fachgebiete

• Naturwissenschaften Astronomie Astronomie: Sachbuch
• Naturwissenschaften Astronomie Astrophysik
• Geowissenschaften Umweltwissenschaften Umweltverschmutzung, Umweltkriminalität, Umweltrecht
• Naturwissenschaften Physik Quantenphysik Kernphysik
• Naturwissenschaften Physik Angewandte Physik Astrophysik
• Interdisziplinäres Wissenschaften Wissenschaften: Allgemeines Populärwissenschaftliche Werke
• Naturwissenschaften Astronomie Kosmologie, Urknalltheorie
• Naturwissenschaften Astronomie Raumfahrt
• Naturwissenschaften Astronomie Galaxien und Sterne

Inhaltsverzeichnis

A Universal Problem.- It’s a Matter of Time.- The Sun, Inside and Out.- The Price of Doing Nothing.- Rejuvenating the Sun.- Stars Transformed.- Between Now and Then.

Über Autor(innen)

Associate professor of astronomy, and Head of the Astronomy Department at Campion College, The University of Regina. My main research interests during the past decade have focused on the smaller objects within the solar system (comets, asteroids and meteoroids), but concomitant to this I have continued to perform research related to the structure and evolution of stars (the area of my doctoral studies). The book being proposed here is partly based upon a series of research papers that I have published over the years and on material used in a solar system studies class. The topic of asteroengineering was recently the focus of an ‘opinion article’ I wrote for the May 2006 issue of Astronomy Now magazine, and an editorial piece in the May 2006 issue of Smithsonian Air and Space magazine.

Home web page: http://hyperion.cc.uregina.ca/~astro/mbeech.html