Explores the relationship between the Sun and the three outer planets of the solar system from the point of view of a planetary scientist, examining the role of Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto as recorders of the formation of the solar system.
Explores the outer solar system, what Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto would be like, why it would take a whole lifetime to travel to Pluto and whether humans could ever live there.
Presents information about the three outer planets of Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto, including when and how they were discovered, what is currently known about them, and relevant spacecraft expeditions.
The original purpose of the "Longer View" books is to provide charts and descriptions of the planets' travels in the years ahead. But there is also the three-century human story (replete with controversies and ironies) of how the first "new" planets were discovered, each leading to the next. And there is much to point out about these bodies' characteristics and intricate motions. 80 illustrations, and 73 short chapters, such as "Herschel's oboe and telescope," "Not the predicted planet," "The apple of discord," "Pioneers and Voyagers to the outer giants," "Neptune's circular yet wavy orbit," "Clusters of Uranus events," "Uranus by Moonlight," "Pluto's much-more-than-sidewise rotation," "Grim ferryman," "The Neptune-Pluto standoff," "The Pluto-Charon embrace," "Pluto's painted deserts," "Oligarchs and Plutocrats..".
Presents information about the three outer planets of Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto, including when and how they were discovered, what is currently know about them, and relevant spacecraft expeditions.