Renato Dicati

Stamping Through Astronomy

• Broschiertes Buch

Produktbeschreibung

Stamps and other postal documents are an attractive vehicle for presenting astronomy and its development. Written with expertise and great enthusiasm, this unique book offers a historical and philatelic survey of astronomy and some related topics on space exploration. It contains more than 1300 color reproductions of stamps relating to the history of astronomy, ranging from the earliest observations of the sky to modern research conducted with satellites and space probes. Featured are the astronomers and astrophysicists who contributed to this marvelous story - not only Ptolemy, Copernicus, Kepler, Newton, Herschel, and Einstein but also hundreds of other minor protagonists who played an important role in the development of this, the most ancient yet the most modern of all the sciences. The book also examines in depth the diverse areas which have contributed to the history of astronomy, including the instrumentation, the theories, and the observations. Many stamps illustrate the beauty and the mystery of celestial objects: galaxies, nebulae, stars, planets, satellites, comets, and minor celestial bodies.

Produktdetails

• Verlag: Springer / Springer Milan / Springer, Berlin
• Artikelnr. des Verlages: 978-88-470-5845-3
• Softcover reprint of the original 1st ed. 2013
• Seitenzahl: 388
• Erscheinungstermin: 2. Oktober 2016
• Englisch
• Abmessung: 244mm x 170mm x 20mm
• Gewicht: 748g
• ISBN-13: 9788847058453
• ISBN-10: 8847058457
• Artikelnr.: 45462639

Autorenporträt

Born in Italy in 1950, Renato Dicati has cultivated since childhood love for astronomy and the interest for space. In 1975 he graduated in Astrophysics at the University of Milan. After an interesting experience as teacher in public schools, he has worked for 30 years at IBM Italy, dealing with education, training and communications based on the use of information technology and multimedia. Over the last twenty years he has dedicated much of his free time to science. He has organized philatelic exhibitions regarding the history of astronomy and astronautics and has published numerous books and articles on astronomy, space exploration and thematic philately. Dicati is member of AS.IT.AF - Italian Astrophilately Society and serves on the Board of Directors of USFI (Italian Philatelic Press Union). Its activities include volunteering at ASPHI, a non-profit foundation that promotes the integration of people with disabilities in school, at work and in society, through the use of ICT (Information Communication Technology).

Inhaltsangabe

1 The origins of Astronomy.- 2 The ancients' Astronomy.- 3 Medieval Astronomy.- 4 The revival of Astronomy and the Copernican revolution.- 5 Galileo and the new views of the sky.- 6 The Mechanical Universe.- 7 The development of instrumentation.- 8 Observations and discoveries in the Solar System.- 9 The advent of Astrophysics.- 10 The discovery of the Universe.- 11 The new astronomies.

Rezensionen

"Dicati has amassed a beautiful collection of stamps, First Day Covers, and postmarks with connections to astronomy, and he shares them with the reader through this well-illustrated book. ... The images are crisp and clean, and the captions are detailed. ... Stamping through astronomy is a visual delight for both astronomers and stamp collectors. The book should serve to lure astronomers to the world of stamp collecting and to introduce stamp collectors to the richness of astronomical history." (Jerry L. Fields, Journal for the History of Astronomy, Vol. 46 (2), May, 2015)

"In this most unusual book, the astronomer Renado Dicati provides a course in astronomy, but with 1,300 postage stamps as illustrations, all in color. The result is a gorgeous volume that will be of interest not only to the general public, astronomy students, and amateur astronomers, but also to those interested in philately. ... Renato Dicati is to be congratulated on this very readable tour de force." (Jay Pasachoff, keyreporter.org, July, 2014)

"Dicati narrates a compact, readable history of astronomy that corresponds to color images of a carefully curated international collection of more than 1,300 stamps. ... The stamp selections feature a wide array of scientists, instrumentation, and discoveries from all over the world. ... the book is interesting and accessible to most readers ... . Summing Up: Recommended. General readers." (C. M. Rauber, Choice, Vol. 51 (8), April, 2014)