New Perspectives in Astrophysical Cosmology / Edition 2

by Martin Rees

Overview

This volume presents an unique and accessible synthesis of modern cosmology. In recent years, observational cosmology has made remarkable advances, bringing into sharper focus a new set of fundamental questions that Martin Rees addresses in this book. Why is the universe expanding the way it is? What were the 'seeds' that caused galaxies, clusters and superclusters to form? What is the nature of 'dark matter'? What happened in the very early universe? The latest exciting advances and theories are discussed, while maintaining a clear distinction between aspects that now have a firm empirical basis and those that remain speculative.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780521645447
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	02/28/2002
Edition description:	REV
Pages:	168
Product dimensions:	6.06(w) x 8.98(h) x 0.39(d)

About the Author

Martin Rees, born in 1942, is a Royal Society Professor and Fellow of King's College, Cambridge. He also has the honorary position of Astronomer Royal. He has held chairs at the University of Sussex and the University of Cambridge. He is a former director of the Institute of Astronomy, Cambridge, and has held visiting positions at Harvard, Caltech and Princeton. In addition to his unique contribution to the field as a researcher, he is the winner of the American Institute of Physics science writing prize, and is a talented lecturer at all levels. In 1993, he was invited to give a series of public lectures under the auspices of the Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei, reviewing the progress of cosmology and its future prospects. These highly successful lectures were published as Perspectives in Astrophysical Cosmology (Cambridge University Press, Lezioni Lincee Series, 1995) and the updated and revised version is presented here.

Table of Contents

Preface; 1. The cosmological framework; 2. Galaxies and dark matter; 3. Emergence of cosmic structure; 4. Quasars and their demography; 5. Some probes and relics of the high-redshift universe; 6. Some fundamental questions; References; Some further reading; Author index; Subject index.

Editorial Reviews

"...remarkable...It synthesizes modern cosmology in a way that no other book or review has recently succeeded in doing." Journal of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada

"...exceptional book" /s Choice

From the Publisher

Rees (King's College, U. of Cambridge, UK) outlines some of the current issues at the interface between extragalactic physics, cosmology, and particle physics. Based on six hours worth of lectures presented to physicists and astronomers, the information is kept to the same level of detail that was necessarily somewhat lacking for the talks. Chapters cover the cosmological framework, galaxies and dark matter, the emergence of cosmic structure, quasars and their demography, and relics of the high-redshift universe. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)