New astronomy and space titles reviewed
The Invisible Universe
Matthew Bothwell Oneworld £18.99 HB
Astronomy is often thought of as a very visual field, with lots of focus on what we can see. In The Invisible Universe, Matthew Bothwell explores those bits that we can’t see – although that’s a little bit of a disservice as those ‘bits’ amount to the vast majority of the cosmos.
To understand what we can’t see, it’s worth first of all understanding why we see what we can actually see. The first chapter is a brief physics lesson covering the history of the discovery and theoretical understanding of light’s true nature, including a bit of quantum physics.
Most of the chapters focus on a particular part of the spectrum or a particular discovery. In every case there’s a narrative taking the reader through a potted history, including some very recent discoveries. It doesn’t try to walk linearly along the spectrum or through a history of discoveries, as the journey of humanity’s discovery hasn’t worked like that. No book like this could avoid jumping around in history, but overall there’s a logical flow.
It’s rather focused on the longwavelength end of the spectrum, perhaps due to the author’s background, and if you have a passion for learning about X-rays or gamma rays, then this isn’t the book for you. But in terms of radio, infrared and microwaves it’s very comprehensive, and when you consider the chapters on black holes, dark matter gravitational waves and the end of the Universe, it certainly covers a lot of ground.
Throughout the book, concepts are well explained, using metaphors and analogies to create an accessible writing style. The author’s day job as an observational astronomer comes through, and there are nice anecdotes about trips to telescopes in Hawaii and Chile, and a few from his base at the University of Cambridge, an embedded in the text by way of illustration, as well as a short, glossy photo section relevant to the story.
An engaging read overall, this book will be of interest to anyone wanting to know more about how we’ve learned what we know about the Universe. ★★★★★
Chris North is Ogden Science Lecturer and STFC Public Engagement Fellow at Cardiff University
Interview with the author Matthew Bothwell
How can we observe the ‘invisible’ Universe?
Lots of things in the Universe, from young stars to dead stars, black holes to entire galaxies, don’t emit much visible light. To see them, we have to use other parts of the electromagnetic spectrum such as radio waves, infrared and X-rays. Some things don’t emit light at all, like dark matter or gravitational waves. All things considered, the Universe we can see really is just the tip of the iceberg.
How can we solve the mystery of dark matter?
We can go big, looking at the Universe as a whole and working backwards by asking, what kind of dark matter would produce a Universe that looks like this? The answer we get is that dark matter is a heavy, slow-moving kind of particle that doesn’t emit light. Or we can go small and build detectors to hunt for dark matter particles right here on Earth. These tend to be deep underground, shielded from cosmic radiation. So far, these experiments haven’t found anything, so we keep hunting.
What is the Universe’s ultimate fate?
I’d love to know! We don’t really understand dark energy, the strange force that seems to be pushing the Universe apart faster and faster. If it’s some kind of constant built into the fabric of space-time, then the Universe is destined to get bigger and bigger, and colder and emptier, forever. If it changes with time, then all bets are off: the Universe could ultimately end up tearing itself to pieces or even collapsing back down to nothingness.
Matthew Bothwell is Public Astronomer at the University of Cambridge’s Institute of Astronomy
Eight Improbable Possibilities
John Gribbin Icon Books £10.99 HB
The title of John Gribbin’s latest book nods towards the famous dictum of Sherlock Holmes: “When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.” This, Gribbin argues in his introduction, is a fairly good encapsulation of the scientific method: testing hypotheses and drawing closer to the truth (though in science never quite being certain we have reached it) every time a failure forces us to look again at our assumptions about the Universe.
The eight short essays that make up this volume explore some of the unexpected and highly improbable conclusions that modern science has reached using this method. Gribbin casts a wide net and displays his breadth of knowledge in packing a lot into each chapter, while ensuring the prose remains readable.
Topics range from the existence of gravitational waves that ripple across the Universe from the Big Bang, to the descent of all life on Earth from a single cell; and from a mind-bending exploration of the true concept of relativity, to the link between ice ages and human evolution.
Perhaps the most intriguing chapter is one that provides the book with its subtitle, The Mystery of the Moon, and Other Implausible Scientific Truths, where Gribbin looks at the origins of the Moon and raises some connections between the presence of our satellite and Earth’s own habitability which I’ve never seen pointed out before. A brief read, but one that may inspire readers to dig deeper. ★★★★★
Giles Sparrow is a science writer and a fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society
The Light of Earth
Al Worden with Francis French University of Nebraska Press £21.99 HB
Ever wondered what Al Worden really thought of Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin? In his latest book written before his death in 2020, the Apollo 15 astronaut shares his candid opinions and does not hold back.
Worden’s raw and honest musings on the space programme, flying to the Moon, about those involved in the Apollo missions, and his life as a retired astronaut are very refreshing to read, and at points quite eye-opening.
There are some funny moments, such as Worden’s experiences with fans at conventions, but there are also heartbreaking points when he recounts the times he learnt of the deaths of fellow astronauts, and the pain of those moments can be felt though his words.
However, there isn’t much structure to this collection of thoughts, which can jump from one topic to the next, like when Worden goes from sharing his opinions on the International Space Station to musing about being inside a Soyuz capsule. Then there is the infamous postal scandal that cost Worden his job as an astronaut: it is alluded to but never explained in detail, which can be quite frustrating to a reader who doesn’t know the story.
This book is not so much Worden’s reflections on a life in space, but more a collection of seemingly random thoughts and opinions put together in its most honest and uncensored form. Is this book a good way to learn about the late Al Worden? I would say not. But it could be a good place to start. ★★★★★
Melissa Brobby is a science communicator and Social Media Officer at the Institute of Physics
PACKED WITH PRACTICAL TIPS
Atlas of Meteor Showers
Philip M Bagnall Springer £27.99 PB
Meteors and meteorites can be the Hollywood blockbusters of astronomical objects. Thankfully, most are less impactful than the 2013 fireball above Chelyabinsk in Russia, which injured hundreds of people and was visible up to 100km away, but there is a perennial fascination in seeing them zip across the night sky.
If you are interested in more than just catching glimpses of these phenomena, this thorough and clearly written handbook (by the author of The Star Atlas Companion) will take you through the practicalities of observing the 10 major annual meteor showers. Because meteors appear in different parts of the sky and are very short-lived, telescopes tend not to be very useful for this sort of astronomy and The Atlas of Meteor Showers concentrates on naked-eye observations.
The book introduces the relevant science of meteor showers, explaining how meteors are caused by the debris of material shed from comets and asteroids, their surfaces heated up as they approach the Sun. When the resulting dust collides with Earth’s atmosphere it can produce spectacular displays, as well as occasional meteorites that survive to land on the surface of our planet.
With huge amounts of detail on each of the major showers, the book seems clearly aimed at the interested and knowledgeable amateur who can navigate their way around a star chart and knows how magnitudes are defined. On the other hand, perhaps puzzlingly, it also has very basic advice about wrapping up warm when observing at night. But all in all, this is a welcome guide for those keen to spot these beautiful evanescent objects and learn more about them. ★★★★★
Pippa Goldschmidt is an astronomy and science writer