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L'édition et la traduction du texte s'accompagnent de trois études qui abordent certains aspects du traité de Plutarque : sa composition littéraire, son contenu astronomique et théologique, avec en particulier le rôle eschatologique que Plutarque attribue à la Lune, identifiée à la déesse Hécate.

Astronomy, Ancient. --- Astronomie ancienne --- Plutarch.

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 The large telescope at Meudon, the Grande Lunette, with an 83 centimeter diameter, has become legendary.  When it was conceived (after 1870), Astronomy was limited to visual observation. Knowledge of the sky was limited to what one could see with the human eye, assisted only by optical means. The large telescopes produced at this time allowed for higher magnifications, permitting close-up views; the Meudon telescope was able to accomplish this perfectly. At Meudon, which was to become a Mecca for visual observation, the major planets were examined in a way that no other telescope had previously been able to. The telescope monitored the state of their atmospheres and mapped the appearance of their surfaces.  Through the telescope, one could see the nuclei of comets, revealing their very small size, and by using a micrometer one could measure the separation of double stars and the diameters of asteroids.  With a marvelous little instrument, the polarimeter, the nature of clouds in planetary atmospheres could be determined and the type of surface material identified. The Grande Lunette has remained to this day the largest refracting telescope in Europe. Audouin Dollfus (1924-2010), a world-renowned astronomer who spent his entire working life at the Meudon Observatory, describes the great years of the Meudon refractor.  He gives the entire story of this instrument, from the birth of the concept that drove Jules Janssen at the end of the nineteenth century, to the idea that French astronomy could provide an outstanding telescope which would approach the limits of the technical and industrial resources of that time.  Out of action since the 1990s, the year 2006 marked the first steps toward restoration and public reopening of the great instrument.  This English translation is by Richard McKim, a Past President of the British Astronomical Association who often worked both with Audouin Dollfus and the instrument which forms the subject of this book.

Astronomy --- Physics --- History of physics --- fysica --- astronomie

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Tentoonstelling --- Aarde (planeet) --- Maan --- Ruimte (astronomie)

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This book presents experiments which will teach physics relevant to astronomy. The astronomer, as instructor, frequently faces this need when his college or university has no astronomy department and any astronomy course is taught in the physics department. The physicist, as instructor, will find this intellectually appealing when faced with teaching an introductory astronomy course. From these experiments, the student will acquire important analytical tools, learn physics appropriate to astronomy, and experience instrument calibration and the direct gathering and analysis of data. Experiments that can be performed in one laboratory session as well as semester-long observation projects are included. This textbook is aimed at undergraduate astronomy students.

Space research --- Cosmology --- Astronomy --- Physics --- astrofysica --- fysica --- ruimte (astronomie) --- astronomie --- kosmologie

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Human history is also the record of our fascination with the sky, and to look upwards is to follow in the steps of such greats as Galileo and Newton. What they and others once saw in the heavens for the first time, amateur astronomers can discover anew using this guide to twenty-five of the greatest journeys through space.   Starting with our most visible companion the Moon, each chapter offers a step-by-step walk-through of famous astronomical observations from the history of science. Beginning with the easiest targets, sometimes even accessible with the naked eye, the challenges become progressively more difficult. Beginner astronomers and more experienced hobbyists alike can reacquaint themselves with the wonders of our fellow planets and even reach far beyond our own solar system to touch on such incredible phenomena as the birth of new stars in nebula systems and the deceptive nothingness of black holes. The would-be astronaut can spy the International Space Station in orbit with binoculars or the doomsday prophet can search for new comets. Along the way, easily digestible mini-lessons inform the reader on the initial discovery of then-new celestial bodies and subsequent advances in our understanding of the cosmos.   Relying only on binoculars or small astronomical telescopes for most of the observations, and including background on the science of each phenomenon, this exploration of the skies is easy to follow and packed with useful information and fun tidbits. These practical observations put us in contact with all the history and culture surrounding them: through scientific speculation and literature to those first fuzzy images made in 1959 by the Russian space probe Luna 3.

Science --- Space research --- Astronomy --- Physics --- History of physics --- popularisering wetenschap --- fysica --- ruimte (astronomie) --- astronomie