Mars (eBook)

From Myth and Mystery to Recent Discoveries

Markus Hotakainen (Autor)

eBook Download: PDF

2010 | 2009
XVII, 256 Seiten
Springer New York (Verlag)
978-0-387-76508-2 (ISBN)

Infos

This absorbing book tells the story of Mars since the dawn of mankind's curiosity for celestial wonders. It covers everything, right from our ancient beliefs, through the revolution in our concepts of the cosmos around us in the 1600s, to the present day knowledge and beyond. It takes the reader on a journey all the way to the futuristic visions of science fiction and terraformed Mars with conditions suitable to Earth life. The story is told in a readable form with an absence of technical jargon. The text is supported by informative imagery and a simple, but inspiring layout with some special features such as a 'flip movie' of the rotation of Mars.

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MARS ON OUR MINDS No one would have believed in the last years of the nineteenth century that this world was being watched keenly and closely by intelligences greater than man's and yet as mortal as his own . . . - Herbert George Wells: War of the Worlds (1898) Yes, they would. And they did, actually very firmly. In the last years of the nineteenth century it was almost an established fact that there were intelligences greater than that of humans and that they were residing on our planetary neighbor, Mars. Ever since those days, people have been waiting for the attack of the little green creatures of the Red Planet with fear, even with fear verging on panic. For a long time "e;Martian"e;has been synonymous with "e;extraterrestrial being. "e; Knowledge about Mars has increased tremendously since the end of the nineteenth century. A mysterious world shrouded in myth was first mapped with the aid of telescopes and then later imaged by planetary probes. Thus, our celestial sibling has become ever more familiar to us and a more everyday part of our culture. A substantial portion of science fiction is focused on Mars or on our own imaginary voyages to the Red Planet. In the world of movies Mars has symbolized the threat of communism, the fear of everything new and strange, and a future utopia for humanity.

Inhalt

Preface 12
MARS ON OUR MINDS 12
Contents 8
Foreword 14
FOURTH ROCK FROM THE SUN 19
GOD OF WAR, HEAVENLY BODY 29
MARTIAN CANAL ENGINEERS 45
PLANETARY UPS AND DOWNS 61
UNIDENTICAL TWINS 83
THE NEW MARS 97
MUSEUM OF WATER 119
DEAD OR ALIVE? 143
GALLERY MARS 155
FEAR AND PANIC 175
ONE REALLY GIANT LEAP 191
GREEN THUMBS OF THE RED PLANET 211
LITTLE GREEN PERSONS 219
MARS ROCKS! 235
AUTHOR’S FINAL NOTE AND ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 250
Appendix A FINNISH MARS RESEARCH – A COSMONAUT PREVENTION PROGRAM 258
Appendix B Mars Probes 1960– 2008 262
About the Author 264
Author Index 266
Subject Index 267

Produkt-Details

• Erscheint lt. Verlag: 11.3.2010
• Zusatzinfo: XVII, 256 p. 230 illus., 176 illus. in color.
• Verlagsort: New York
• Sprache: englisch
• Themenwelt: Sachbuch/Ratgeber ► Natur / Technik ► Weltraum / Astronomie
• Themenwelt: Naturwissenschaften ► Geowissenschaften ► Geologie
• Themenwelt: Naturwissenschaften ► Physik / Astronomie ► Astronomie / Astrophysik
• Themenwelt: Technik
• Schlagworte: award winning Mars book • History of Mars • Mars book • Mars discoveries • Martian landscapes • Planet • Solar • Solar System
• ISBN-10: 0-387-76508-5 / 0387765085
• ISBN-13: 978-0-387-76508-2 / 9780387765082