First Light: Switching on Stars at the Dawn of Time, Revised Edition

By Emma Chapman and Emma Chapman

Book Overview

Astronomers have successfully observed a great deal of the Universe's history, from recording the afterglow of the Big Bang to visualising the shadow of a black hole. However, when it comes to understanding how the Universe began and grew up, we have been literally in the dark. In First Light, astrophysicist Emma Chapman illuminates this previously unknown, billion-year timeline. This book tells the story of the very first stars during the Cosmic Dawn and Epoch of Reionisation - the time when the very first stars burst into life. These stars were hundreds of times the size of the Sun and a million times more luminous: lonely blue giants that lived fast and died young in enormous explosions, seeding the Universe with the elements that would eventually make up life itself. As guide to these ancient stars, Emma ells how these stars formed, why they were so unusual and what they can teach us about the Universe today. She also gives a first-hand look at the immense telescopes currently being developed that are taking this period in the Universe's history from the realm of theoretical physics towards the wonder of observational astronomy. Book jacket.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 147296294X
• ISBN13: 9781472962942
• Release Date: June 2022
• Publisher: Bloomsbury SIGMA
• Length: 304 Pages
• Weight: 0.53 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.1" x 7.8"