EAN: 9783319288130

EARLY INVESTIGATIONS OF CERES AND THE DISCOVERY...

An asteroid scholar  Cunningham in this book picks up where Volume I Ceres  The First Asteroid
Found left off in telling the story of the impact waves created by the discovery of this new
class of object in the early 1800s. The best and brightest minds of mathematics  science  and
philosophy were mesmerized by Ceres  and figures as diverse as Gauss  Herschel  Hegel  Kant and
Laplace all contributed something to the conversation. The first few chapters deal with the
mathematical and philosophical aspects of the discovery  and the rivalry between Germany and
France that so affected science and astronomy of that era. Piazzi's controversial role in the
initial discovery of Ceres in 1801 and then failure to locate it again is examined in detail 
as is the reception given to Herschel's use of the word 'asteroid.' The origin of the asteroids
and their relationship to meteors is also examined. Astronomy was a truly cosmopolitan field at
the time  spanning across various disciplines  and the discovery of Ceres  a story completely
told in these pages  exemplifies the excitement and drama of early 1800s astronomy. Biographies
of the major players involved in the story of the Ceres are given  which help to contextualize
the discovery.

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