Schilling The Hunt for Planet X

New Worlds and the Fate of Pluto
2009
ISBN: 978-0-387-77805-1
Verlag: Springer
Format: PDF
Kopierschutz: 1 - PDF Watermark

E-Book, Englisch, 281 Seiten

Ever since the serendipitous discovery of planet Uranus in 1871, astronomers have been hunting for new worlds in the outer regions of our solar system. This exciting and ongoing quest culminated recently in the discovery of hundreds of ice dwarfs in the Kuiper belt, robbed Pluto from its 'planet' status, and led to a better understanding of the origin of the solar system. This timely book reads like a scientific 'who done it', going from the heights of discovery to the depths of disappointment in the hunt for 'Planet X'. Based on many personal interviews with astronomers, the well-known science writer Govert Schilling introduces the heroes in the race to be the first in finding another world, bigger than Pluto.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Schilling, Govert

Inhaltsverzeichnis

1;Foreword;6
2;Contents;8
3;A Larger Solar System;13
3.1;Pea;15
3.2;Conjunction;16
3.3;Fuzzy Star;19
4;Eleven Planets;22
4.1;Quest;24
4.2;Point of Light;25
4.3;Fragments;27
5;The Writing Desk Planet;29
5.1;Orbital Deviations;31
5.2;Mathematical Genius;31
5.3;Not on the Map;33
5.4;Loss of Face;35
5.5;Search;37
6;‘I’ve Found Your Planet X’;38
6.1;Another Planet?;39
6.2;Lowell’s Hunt;41
6.3;New Searches for Planet X;42
6.4;Tombaugh’s Dedication;45
7;The Kid Planet;48
7.1;The Pluto Breakfast;50
7.2;Cartoon Character;52
7.3;Scrapbooks;54
8;A Strange and Wonderful Week;56
8.1;Missed Opportunity;57
8.2;Omen;59
8.3;Charon;62
9;Fortunate Circumstances;64
9.1;Atmosphere;65
9.2;Mr Pluto;67
9.3;Pure Luck;68
9.4;Odd Man Out;70
10;Nix and Hydra;73
10.1;Hubble Photos;74
10.2;Double Discovery;76
10.3;Confirmation;77
10.4;Names;79
10.5;Quibbling;80
11;The Unauthorized Planet;82
11.1;Painstaking Work;83
11.2;Rhadamanthus;86
11.3;Centaurs;87
11.4;Forbidden Zone;88
12;Uranus: Problem Solved?;91
12.1;Speculation;92
12.2;Humphrey;93
12.3;Exit Planet X;94
12.4;A Pinch of Salt;96
13;Mysterious Forces;98
13.1;Explorers;99
13.2;Precision Measurements;101
13.3;The Pioneer Anomaly;102
13.4;Planets Aplenty;103
14;The Hunt for the Death Star;105
14.1;Dinosaurs;106
14.2;Nemesis;108
14.3;Questions;110
14.4;A Remote Planet X;111
15;The Secret Planet;114
15.1;A Ready Pen;115
15.2;Conspiracy;116
15.3;Zetas;117
15.4;Mayas;119
16;Vulcanoids and Earth-Grazers;121
16.1;Vulcan;122
16.2;Astronomy by Fighter Jet;123
16.3;Earth-Grazers;125
16.4;Apophis;126
16.5;Danger of Impact;127
17;The Kuiper Connection;129
17.1;Beyond Neptune;131
17.2;The Kuiper Belt;132
17.3;Enormous Legacy;134
18;Comet Puzzles;137
18.1;The Oort Cloud;139
18.2;Roving Comets;140
18.3;Wriggling Dots;142
18.4;Simulations;143
19;Smiley;146
19.1;Uncertainties;147
19.2;White Mountain;150
19.3;Lucky Strike;152
20;Family Portraits;156
20.1;Plutinos;157
20.2;Speed Blinking;159
20.3;Mini-Feud;162
21;The Migrating Planet;165
21.1;Odyssey;166
21.2;Migration;169
21.3;Resonances;171
22;Icy Treasure Troves;174
22.1;Pitfalls;176
22.2;Pholus;178
22.3;Variety;180
23;The Big Five;182
23.1;Large Field of View;184
23.2;Quaoar;186
23.3;QUEST;188
23.4;Sedna;191
24;The Tenth Planet;194
24.1;Xena;196
24.2;Tenth Planet;198
24.3;Lila;200
25;The Spanish Invasion;203
25.1;Andalusian Catch;204
25.2;Google;206
25.3;Typing Error;208
25.4;IP Addresses;210
25.5;Secrecy;211
26;Pas de deux;214
26.1;Big Whack;216
26.2;Icy Duos;218
26.3;Confirmation;219
27;Model from Nice;222
27.1;Strange Pair;223
27.2;Migration and Resonance;225
27.3;Bombardment;228
28;Planet Under Siege;231
28.1;Demotion;232
28.2;Pluto Soap Opera;234
28.3;Wanted: A Definition;237
29;Planetary Elections;240
29.1;Dwarf Planets;242
29.2;Rebellion;244
29.3;Foul Play;245
30;The Continuing Story;249
30.1;Eris and Dysnomia;250
30.2;Buffy;252
30.3;A Hundred Thousand Ice Dwarfs;254
31;A Thousand Planets;258
31.1;Indirect Clues;259
31.2;Origins;262
31.3;Mysteries;264
32;New Horizons;267
32.1;Pluto Fast Flyby;268
32.2;A Fresh Start;270
32.3;Souvenirs from Earth;271
33;Chronology;276
34;Glossary of terms;282
35;Bibliography;286
36;Index;287