

Space Exploration―A History in 100 Objects
By:
This is no ordinary space book.
Within the pages of this eclectic pop-history, scientist and educator Sten Odenwald at NASA examines 100 objects that forever altered what we know and how we think about the cosmos. From Sputnik to Skylab and Galileo’s telescope to the Curiosity rover, some objects are iconic and some obscure—but all are utterly important.
- The Nebra sky disk (1600 BCE) features the first realistic depiction of the Sun, Moon, and stars.
- The Lunar Laser Ranging RetroReflector finallyshowed us how far we are from the Moon in 1969.
- In 1986, it was the humble, rubber O-ring that doomed the space shuttle Challenger.
- The Event Horizon Telescope gave us our first glimpse of a black hole in 2019.
These 100 objects, as Odenwald puts it, showcase the workhorse tools and game-changing technologies that have altered the course of space history…the tools and devices that, taken together, represent the major scientific discoveries—and celebrate the human ingenuity—of space technology, showing the ways physics and engineering have brought about our greatest leaps in understanding the way our universe works… They make it clear that we have made giant strides in our quest to search ever more deeply into the farthest reaches of the universe—and behind each new discovery is an object that expands our appreciation of space as well as the boundless imagination and resourcefulness we carry within us.
ISBN: 9781615196142
JLG Release: Jan 2020
Series:
Space Exploration
Praise & Reviews
Starred or favorable reviews have been received from these periodicals:
School Library Journal
School Library Journal
The author uses a wide range of unique items to trace discoveries and technology developments that marked crucial advances in understanding the world and the universe from 70,000 BCE to the present. Readers may see Sputnik on the cover and assume that all the items discussed are rockets and robots, but the artifacts include bronze medallions, petro The author uses a wide range of unique items to trace discoveries and technology developments that marked crucial advances in understanding the world and the universe from 70,000 BCE to the present. Readers may see Sputnik on the cover and assume that all the items discussed are rockets and robots, but the artifacts include bronze medallions, petroglyphs, and medicine wheels, too. Readers will be amazed at the wide range of time periods and cultures represented by the featured examples. Photographs show the details of the astrolabes, star charts, and lenses, while the back matter includes a guide to the objects’ current locations. The author’s explanations of the significance of each piece in relation to astronomy and aerospace are also compelling celebrations of the contributions from around the world and throughout history. A must for science departments and library collections.
Book Details
ISBN
9781615196142
First Release
January 2020
Genre
Nonfic
Dewey Classification
520.9
Trim Size
9 1/2" x 7 2/3"
Page Count
224
Accelerated Reader
N/AScholastic Reading Counts
N/ALexile
N/AFormat
Print Book
Edition
Hardcover edition
Publisher
The Experiment