{"product_id":"many-skies-alternative-histories-of-the-sun-moon-planets-and-stars-paperback","title":"Many Skies: Alternative Histories of the Sun, Moon, Planets, and Stars - Paperback","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp style=\"text-align: right;\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/reportcopyrightinfringement.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eReport copyright infringement\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eArthur Upgren\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWhat if Earth had several moons or massive rings like Saturn? What if the Sun were but one star in a double-star or triple-star system? What if Earth were the only planet circling the Sun? \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThese and other imaginative scenarios are the subject of Arthur Upgren's inventive book \u003ci\u003eMany Skies: Alternative Histories of the Sun, Moon, Planets, and Stars.\u003c\/i\u003e Although the night sky as we know it seems eternal and inevitable, Upgren reminds us that, just as easily, it could have been very different. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eHad the solar sytem happened to be in the midst of a star cluster, we might have many more bright stars in the sky. Yet had it been located beyond the edge of the Milky Way galaxy, we might have no stars at all. If Venus or Mars had a moon as large as ours, we would be able to view it easily with the unaided eye. Given these or other alternative skies, what might Ptolemy or Copernicus have concluded about the center of the solar sytem and the Sun? \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThis book not only examines the changes in science that these alternative solar, stellar, and galactic arrangements would have brought, it also explores the different theologies, astrologies, and methods of tracking time that would have developed to reflect them. Our perception of our surroundings, the number of gods we worship, the symbols we use in art and literature, even the way we form nations and empires are all closely tied to our particular (and accidental) placement in the universe. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003eMany Skies\u003c\/i\u003e, however, is not merely a fanciful play on what might have been. Upgren also explores the actual ways that human interferences such as light pollution are changing the night sky. Our atmosphere, he warns, will appear very different if we have belt of debris circling the globe and blotting out the stars, as will happen if advertisers one day pollute space with brilliant satellites displaying their products. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eFrom fanciful to foreboding, the scenarios in \u003ci\u003eMany Skies\u003c\/i\u003e will both delight and inspire reflection, reminding us that ours is but one of many worldviews based on our experience of a universe that is as much a product of accident as it is of intention.\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eArthur Upgren is emeritus professor of astronomy at Wesleyan University and senior research scientist at Yale University. He is also the author of several popular books on science and astronomy, including \u003ci\u003eNight Has a Thousand Eyes\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eThe Turtle and the Stars: Observations of an Earthbound Astronomer\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 212\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.45 x 9 x 6 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eIllustrated:\u003c\/strong\u003e Yes\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e April 09, 2012\u003c\/div\u003e\n            ","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47789644349661,"sku":"9780813553504","price":60.58,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0811\/9867\/8237\/files\/k28W7V_5uE9780813553504.webp?v=1776232549","url":"https:\/\/handfulofbooks.com\/products\/many-skies-alternative-histories-of-the-sun-moon-planets-and-stars-paperback","provider":"Handful of Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}