The The Shadow Of The Telescope Av Gunther Buttman

Günther Buttman''s The Shadow of the Telescope was the firstfull-length biography of the nineteenth-century astronomer, Sir John Herschel.First published in German, this intriguing text chronicles the life and worksof the third of the Herschel astronomers, the son of William and the nephew ofCaroline. John was extremely intelligent, graduating as Senior Wrangler in thenotoriously difficult Mathematical Tripos at Cambridge University. While lessfamous than his father and aunt, he nevertheless went on to make importantdiscoveries in the field of astronomy. He named seven moons of Saturn and fourmoons of Uranus, the planet his father had only recently discovered. Making admirable use of John''s unpublished correspondence, diaries,and notebooks, Buttman covers his extensive astronomical observations at CapeTown in South Africa, his pioneering work in photography and in physical opticsin Britain, his unhappy experiences as Master of the Mint, and much more.