Where did we come from? Before there was life there had to be something to live on - a planet, a solar system. During the past 200 years, astronomers and geologists have developed and tested several different theories about the origin of the solar system and the nature of the Earth. Did the Earth and other planets form as a by-product of a natural process that formed the Sun? Did the solar system come into being as the result of catastrophic encounter of two stars? Is the inside of the Earth solid, liquid or gaseous? The three volumes that make up A History of Modern Planetary Physics present a survey of these theories. Nebulous Earth follows the development of the nineteenth-century's most popular explanation for the origin of the solar system, Laplace's Nebular Hypothesis. This theory supposes that a flattened mass of gas extending beyond Neptune's orbit cooled and shrank, throwing off in the process successive rings that in time coalesced to form several planets.

Nebulous Earth follows the development of the nineteenth-century's most popular explanation for the origin of the solar system, Laplace's Nebular Hypothesis.
Reviews
"...a major work, large in scope and splendid in execution....This will be a standard work for a long time to come." Curtis Wilson, Physics Today
"The three-volume A History of Modern Planetary Physics by Stephen G. Brush is a amjor work, large in scope and splendidin execution....Brush's account of many of the episodes is enhanced by his personal correspondence with the scientists involved....Brush's text...is workmanlike and probingly thoughtful. This will be a standard work for a long time to come." Physics Today
"I recommend this work highly for those with interests in the history of geology or astronomy, the development of scientific ideas, or the role of the individual within the scientific community." Michael Thayer, Science Books and Films



Book Information
ISBN 9780521093217
Author Stephen G. Brush
Format Paperback
Page Count 328
Imprint Cambridge University Press
Publisher Cambridge University Press
Weight(grams) 460g
Dimensions(mm) 234mm * 156mm * 18mm