Customer Reviews

An Acre of Glass: A History and Forecast of the Telescope

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In this relatively detailed work, the author discusses the history of the telescope. This history is heavily slanted towards the past century, with much detail provided on developments in recent decades; forecasts for the foreseeable future are also presented. Although optical telescopes, and related apparatus, take center stage, radio telescopes are also discussed. A set of short notes in the back of the book provides clear and concise explanations of some of the items presented in the main text. The author writes very clearly and in an engaging style; he succeeds admirably in conveying the excitement of both furthering the technology as well as using it to deepen our knowledge in the fascinating field of astronomy. Plenty of photos and diagrams complement this excellent work. I believe that this book can be of great interest to a wide range of readers, but it will be most easily accessible to science buffs, especially those already acquainted with the basic physical principles that are central to astronomy and astronomical observation.

As the title "An Acre of Glass" suggests, this book is primarily about the building of ever-larger optical telescopes around the world. The author does a credible job with the story, with accurate discussions and generally good writing. If anything detracts from the reader's experience it is the author's diversions into other stories. He breaks the central story between Palomar and the next generation of observatories with a chapter on radio astronomy and an assortment of other astronomy achievements. All important stuff, but just a distraction in this book. It would have been better to have spread the material through the book, or have placed it in an appendix. The chapter on the Hubble space telescope seems similarly perfunctory. I think the book would have been stronger if the author had remained focused on his real story and resisted the urge to pretend to cover a larger subject. But people interested in the development of ever larger optical telescopes will still enjoy this book.

Astronomers have long endeavored to understand the universe and its construction by using telescopes to make new discovers. AN ACRE OF GLASS describes the history of telescope technology and how recent innovations have led to a leap forward in astronomical discovery. AN ACRE OF GLASS: A HISTORY AND FORECAST OF THE TELESCOPE reveals how telescope technology lead directly to these new findings - and new questions. Chapters often read with the drama of fiction, documenting the discoveries and endeavors of individuals involved in astronomical science and research. An excellent guide to how modern astronomy has been pushed by telescope advancement.

Excellent history of optical telescopes. also excellent survey of modern monolithic mirrors with description of the segmented telescope.