Cosmic Messengers
The Limits of Astronomy in an Unruly Universe

Focusing on the ultimate limits of observational astronomy, Harwit explores how well we will ever understand the Universe.

Martin Harwit (Author)

9781108842440, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 11 February 2021

396 pages
25 x 17.4 x 2.2 cm, 0.9 kg

'Cosmic Messengers should be of interest to a wide audience of astronomers, other scientists, historians of science, government agency planners, and anyone who wants to see the fruits of curiosity- driven research. It will also be a valuable resource to students and others aiming to place their research into a much larger context.' James Moran, Physics Today

Martin Harwit, author of the influential book Cosmic Discovery, asks key questions about the scope of observational astronomy. Humans have long sought to understand the world we inhabit. Recent realization of how our unruly Universe distorts information before it ever reaches us reveals distinct limits on how well we will ultimately understand the Cosmos. Even the best instruments we might conceive will inevitably be thwarted by ever more complex distortions and will never untangle the data completely. Observational astronomy, and the cost of pursuing it, will then have reached an inherent end. Only some totally different lines of approach, as yet unknown and potentially far more costly, might then need to emerge if we wish to learn more. This accessible book is written for all astronomers, astrophysicists, and those curious about how well we will ever understand the Universe and the potential costs of pushing those limits.

Preface
Part I. Instruments, Messengers, and Cosmic Messages: 1. Instruments, Messengers, Astrophysics and Cosmochemistry
2. Primordial Messengers and their Interpretation
Part II. The Bounded Energies of Nature's Messengers: 3. Cosmic Ray Particles, Photons, and Leptons
4. Gravitational Waves
5. Gravitational Lensing
Part III. Parameters Specifying Individual Messengers: 6. The Ranges of Messenger Parameters
Part IV The Pace of Progress
7. An Era of Surveys
8. The Accumulation of Discoverable Phenomena
9. The Human Aspect of the Cosmic Search
Appendix: Symbols, Glossary, Units and their Ranges
Index.

Subject Areas: Astrophysics [PHVB], Cosmology & the universe [PGK], Astronomical observation: observatories, equipment & methods [PGG], History of science [PDX], Philosophy of science [PDA]