Front cover image for Astronomical enigmas : life on Mars, the Star of Bethlehem, and other Milky Way mysteries

Astronomical enigmas : life on Mars, the Star of Bethlehem, and other Milky Way mysteries

Provides answers to questions about the universe and its composition, history, and future. Discusses historical mysteries in astronomy, including Stonehenge and the identity of the star of Bethlehem. Examines today's controversial questions about Mars, Pluto, and the moon. Addresses future astronomy issues, such as whether an asteroid will cause destruction on earth and if climate changes will turn the planets into stardust
Print Book, English, 2005
Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, 2005
Popular works
vi, 297 pages : illustrations (some color), maps (some color) ; 25 cm
9780801880261, 0801880262
54989210
Why study the universe?
What our forebears knew. Stonehenge : monument or megalithic observatory? ; How did the stars get their names? ; What was the Christmas star? ; How do we know when comet Halley was seen?
Looking around our solar system. Our moon : nearest neighbor, and hot property? ; Is there life on Mars? ; Pluto : impostor or king of the outer darkness? ; How astronomers learn without going anywhere
Triumph or disaster? Clear and present danger : will we be the next dinosaurs? ; Goldilocks and the three planets ; Going to the planets? ; Are we stardust? ; Manned spaceflight at the crossroads