By Watson F.
Finds lucidly the historical past, technology, and know-how at the back of the telescope and the big influence that it has had for 400 years
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Extra info for Stargazer: The Life and Times of the Telescope (2006)(en)(368s)
Example text
The blade had come within half an inch of mortally fracturing his skull, and within an inch of taking his sight. Today, this man is remembered as the most I Stargazer text pages 29/8/07 12:16 PM THE EYES OF Page 19 DENMARK | 19 capable scientist of his time, a man who used his abundant gifts—which included eagle-eyed visual acuity—to bring order to humanity’s confused perception of the Universe. But how nearly had those gifts come to being snuffed out altogether on the wintry ground of a north German churchyard.
His soaring achievements in science and technology owed much to them, too. He was naturally interested in the behaviour of light, and thought deeply about such questions as whether the atmosphere bends starlight, and why the sky is blue. He didn’t always arrive at the right answers, but he got remarkably close given the scientific tools at his disposal. In one of his astronomical observations, at least, he was spot-on: he was the first person to deduce that the faintly illuminated lunar disc seen in the crescent Moon is due to light reflected from the Earth.
Such was Rudolph’s enthusiasm for the great astronomer’s work that it brought the promise of a brilliant new chapter in his life. But it was to be short-lived. After a dinner party on 13 October 1601, Tycho found himself unable to pass water. Probably, it was due to hypertrophy of the prostate, although its onset was unusually sudden. Today, the problem would be fixed quickly and easily with a catheter, but for Tycho it spelled days of excruciating pain and increasing sickness as uraemia took hold.