Hyperspace: The Universe and Its Mysteries [Hardcover]

DK Publishing (Author), John Gribbin (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 15, 2001 | ISBN-10: 0789478382 | ISBN-13: 978-0789478382

The exploration of the Universe which largely began to take place in the final decades of the 20th century is the story told in Hyperspace: Our Final Frontier. There have now been space probes to all the major planets of the Earth's Solar System -- the only worlds that are likely to be physically explored in our lifetime. Beyond the Solar System, across the final frontier of space, however, astronomers are now able to explore the Universe by proxy, using evidence from light, radio waves, x-ray, and other information gathered by telescopes on the Earth's surface and by orbiting satellites. Astronomers can now work out the life cycles of stars, the evolution of galaxies, the location of other solar systems, and the fate of the Universe itself. Hyperspace: Our Final Frontier provides a compelling insight into the way that astronomers work, explaining how they make the discoveries that make headlines, as well as the stories behind those headlines. From the first steps which measured the distances to the nearest stars, to the latest discovery that the Universe is expanding at an ever faster rate, John Gribbin puts deep space into perspective with the aid of specially commissioned illustrations and revealing photographs from the latest generation of astronomical telescopes.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Adult/High School-A companion book to TLC's Hyperspace, this is a guide to the universe. Gribbin provides an introduction to the basic concepts of astronomy and cosmology, such as figuring out distances to stars. He then explores the Big Bang, and looks into whether the universe will expand forever or collapse into a black hole. The author also provides the history of the search for extraterrestrial life and covers quantum mechanics and the "Many Worlds Interpretation." Several spreads on specific concepts such as spectroscopy or Schredinger's Cat are scattered throughout the text. Hyperspace is full of wonderful photos and illustrations that are simply stunning. The text is extremely well designed, with references to other pages that connect to the topic at hand. This makes the book especially accessible for browsing. The explanations are clear, concise, grounded in science, and entertaining. An appealing, informative addition with a fabulous, attention-catching cover.

Susan Salpini, Fairfax County Public Schools, VA

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

The companion to the BBC television series Space, this appealing picture book explores, in plain language and lots of amazing images, our universe as we currently understand it. Although concentrating on mainstream cosmological topics like the big bang and the life of stars, award-winning popular science writer Gribbin slips in a fair amount of hard science to provide even the casual reader with solid background knowledge. Topics such as the Doppler effect, parallax, spectroscopy, and the conundrums of quantum physics are neatly introduced, but the real attraction is the visual beauty of the wonderfully reproduced photographs from the Hubble space telescope, which has given us pictures from space both near and far in detail never before seen. The shots of Mars and Venus, comets, quasars, fields of distant galaxies, and especially the otherworldly nebulae, the breeding ground of stars, are sights to behold. Each topic will be explored in further detail in three forthcoming titles. David Siegfried
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 240 pages
• Publisher: DK ADULT (September 15, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0789478382
• ISBN-13: 978-0789478382
• Product Dimensions: 11.3 x 10.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,104,285 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Good Companion To The Series, October 23, 2001

By 

David Pasquantonio (Millis, Mass., USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Hyperspace: The Universe and Its Mysteries (Hardcover)

This book does not follow the TV series special blow by blow, but it does cover much of the same material and makes a great companion to the series.

Much of the material in this book is subject to change over the next few years as new discoveries are made, so if you are interested in "Hyperspace," get it soon to be assured that it is accurate.

I did not find this book to be as good a companion work as, say, "Cosmos" the book was when it came out with that groundbreaking series, but it's close. DK, as always, does an excellent job producing lively texts, and this is no exception.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Packs color photos with easily-understood explanations, December 13, 2001

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hyperspace: The Universe and Its Mysteries (Hardcover)

John Gribbin's Hyperspace accompanies a BBC/TLC special on the subject and packs over 250 color photos into a guide to the latest new theories and discoveries of astronomy. From how astronomers measure distances in space to theories about the origins, composition and nature of the universe, this packs color photos with easily-understood explanations.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Hyperspace: The Universe and its Mysteries, November 4, 2002

By 

Joe Zika "Khemprof" (Cincinnati, Ohio) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Hyperspace: The Universe and Its Mysteries (Hardcover)

Hyperspace: The Universe and its Mysteries written by John Gribbin is a very well-written book and has some really beautiful pictures and illustrations.

"Hyperspace" takes the reader a a quest to find some answers as to how the universe and our galaxy was formed. This book is a companion to the TLC video "Hyperspace: Our Final Frontier." This book shows us how astronomers are now able to explore the universe by proxy... by light, radio waves, and x-rays. There is satellite information and revealing photography from the latest generation of astronomical telescopes all are here in the book making for some very interesting reading along with some interesting illustration to make a point.

The book's contents has but four chapters: Across the Universe, The Fate of the Universe, Making Contact, and Other Worlds. As you read the well-written narrative, you will learn about the universe and its wonders. This is an excellent text for understanding and learning about the universe without having an advanced degree.