American Eclipse - A Nation's Epic Race to Catch the Shadow of the Moon and Win the Glory of the World

In the summer of 1878 three ruthless and brilliant scientists raced to Wyoming and Colorado to observe a total solar eclipse. One sought to discover a new planet. Another fought to prove that science was not an anathema to femininity. And a young, megalomaniacal inventor sought to test his bona fides and light the world through his revelations.

David Baron brings to life these three competitors-James Craig Watson, Maria Mitchell and Thomas Edison-re-creating the jockeying of nineteenth-century astronomy. With accounts of train robberies and Indian skirmishes, the last days of the Wild West come alive. A magnificent portrayal of America's dawn as a superpower, American Eclipse depicts a nation looking to the skies to reveal its ambition and expose its genius.

About the author

David Baron is an award-winning journalist, broadcaster, and author of The Beast in the Garden and American Eclipse. A former science correspondent for NPR, he has also written for the New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times, Scientific American, and other publications. David recently served as the Baruch S. Blumberg NASA/Library of Congress Chair in Astrobiology, Exploration, and Scientific Innovation. He lives in Boulder, Colorado.

Product details

• Authors: David Baron, Baron David
• Publisher: Liveright Publishing Corporation
• Languages: English
• Product format: Hardback
• Released: 07.07.2017
• EAN: 9781631490163
• ISBN: 978-1-63149-016-3
• No. of pages: 352
• Dimensions: 167 mm x 241 mm x 35 mm
• Weight: 685 g
• Subjects: Natural sciences, medicine, IT, technology > Physics, astronomy > Astronomy; USA, SCIENCE / History, c 1800 to c 1900, 19th century, c 1800 to c 1899, History of Science, United States of America, USA, Solar system: the Sun & planets, Solar system: the Sun and planets, SCIENCE / Space Science / Astronomy