Click on a thumbnail to go to Google Books.
Loading... The Perfect Machine: Building the Palomar Telescopeby Ronald Florence
None Loading...
Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. No current Talk conversations about this book. Fifty years after its completion, the 200-inch telescope at Mount Palomar is still among the most powerful on earth. Now, Ronald Florence presents the sweeping saga of the telescope's construction--and the scientists, engineers, and builders who dedicated themselves to the awesome perfection of this machine. An account of the creation of "the perfect machine" a stirring chronicle of the birth of Big Science and a poignant rendering of an America mired in the depression yet reaching for the stars. no reviews | add a review
Almost a half-century after is completion, the 200-inch Palomar telescope remains an unparalleled combination of vast scale and microscope detail. As huge as the Pantheon of Rome and as heavy as the Statue of Liberty, this magnificent instrument is so precisely built that its seventeen-foot mirror was hand-polished to a tolerance of 2/1,000,000 of an inch. The telescope's construction drove some to the brink of madness, made others fearful that mortals might glimpse heaven, and transfixed an entire nation. Ronald Florence weaves into his account of the creation of "the perfect machine" a stirring chronicle of the birth of Big Science and a poignant rendering of an America mired in the depression yet reaching for the stars. No library descriptions found. |
Current DiscussionsNonePopular covers
Google Books — Loading... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)522.2979498Natural sciences and mathematics Astronomy Telescopes and handbooks Telescopes (See also 535.83 Optics) Famous telescopesLC ClassificationRatingAverage:
Is this you?Become a LibraryThing Author. |