Impact Jupiter [Hardcover]

David H. Levy (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0306450887 | ISBN-13: 978-0306450884 | Publication Date: August 21, 1995 | Edition: First Edition

On July 16, 1994 a world-shattering event occurred that would rivet our attention for six explosive days and go on to make history as the single most important celestial event of the century. Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 crashed into Jupiter, changing forever our understanding of comets and cosmic cataclysms. Our own sense of security would never be the same as the world witnessed fragment after fragment of the comet bash into Jupiter with the collective equivalent force of a 50-million-megaton bomb. David Levy, co-discoverer of periodic Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9, shares his once-in-several-lifetimes' story from the time of the discovery, with Eugene and Carolyn Shoemaker, of this unusual "squashed" comet to the later shocking revelation of hearing that "their" comet was destined to collide with Jupiter. Never in recorded history has a comet created such a catastrophic event as smashing into a planet. Impact Jupiter takes off where David Levy's earlier acclaimed book, The Quest for Comets, left us. Magnificent photos of the impacts, including superb color pictures, accompany David's poetic words, vividly bringing to life his thrilling story. Savor the words of one of the world's most celebrated amateur astronomers as he humbly and eloquently opens the beauty of the heavens to all who are curious.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The encounter of comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 (S-L9) with Jupiter in July 1994 furnished the first modern scientific observations of a spectacular planetary collision. Astronomer Levy (The Quest for Comets), codiscoverer of S-L9, gives a blow-by-blow description of the discovery of the comet, its orbit and fragmentation, observations of its impacts and current understanding of the data. Along the way, distributing credits broadly, he furnishes general background and copious down-to- earth anecdotes of the daily practice of astronomical research. A sidelight is the revolutionary development of rapid sharing of science work via the Internet. The story, illustrated with color and black-and-white photos, is impressively documented, and the details are presented in clear language, with an enthusiastic yet lighthearted tone that sustains reader interest when the chatty narrative hops around. Levy's account is a definitive memoir of the unfolding of the S-L9 episode, potentially engrossing for anyone at all interested in astronomy.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

On a cloudy winter night in 1993, Levy and his friends and fellow skywatchers Gene and Carolyn Shoemaker discovered the oddly shaped comet that, just six months later, crashed into Jupiter and provided earthlings with a spectacular and sobering demonstration of nature's might. As Levy, popular author of numerous books, including The Quest for Comets (1994), chronicles the entire fascinating Shoemaker-Levy 9 saga, we're struck by how radically science has been changed by computer technology. We're now capable of the instantaneous transmission of information and images not only from anywhere on earth, but, with the advent of mobile robotic observers such as the Hubble Space Telescope, from far out in the galaxy. Hubble captured one astonishing picture after another of the comet fragments hurtling toward Jupiter, the plumes their impacts sent spraying up into space, and the "wounds" sustained by the gas giant. Millions of people watched the glorious demise of Shoemaker-Levy 9 both on television and on the Internet, and Levy's delight in the technology that made this media hype possible, and in his own moments in the spotlight, is palpable in his fast-paced, informatively descriptive account. Donna Seaman

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 280 pages
• Publisher: Basic Books; First Edition edition (August 21, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0306450887
• ISBN-13: 978-0306450884
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.8 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,159,137 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Smashing Story That Will Leave A Big Impact On You, June 5, 2004

By 

frankbif "frankbif" (Wesley Hills, New York United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Impact Jupiter (Hardcover)

In July 1994, a once-in-a-lifetime event occurred: a planetary impact in our solar system. Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 headed straight for the comet and asteroid magnet known as Jupiter, our largest planet. Without Jupiter to act as a giant cue ball for incoming debris, it's unlikely that we would be here on planet Earth today, as there would be far more dangerous Earth impacts affecting life on our planet beyond the normal once-every-23 million years global wipeouts that have been occurring since life sprung up on our blue planet.

David Levy's book is a personal odyssey of how he and the Shoemaker's (Carolyn and Gene, the latter deceased as of 1998) happened to discover the impact of SL-9 in 1995. It was the first of 3 consecutive comet shows during the 1990's, with Comet Hyukatuke in 1996 and Comet Hale-Bopp in 1997 helping to revitalize astronomy and comet interest after the disappointing return of much-expected Halley's Comet in 1986.

The book does a good job of letting you experience the thrills that Levy and others went through during their confirming that the comet would hit Jupiter and the buildup to the expected collision dates. The diaries of the media frenzy are particularly illuminating. The one area where the book falls short is not having enough color photos of the impacts themselves. Published in 1995, "Impact Jupiter" should have had access to enough color photos, especially from the Hubble Space Telescope. There are some decent black-and-white shots, some interesting drawings and sketchings, but more color photos from the HST or other telescopes should have been included. Needless to say, there are a ton of such shots now available on the internet or in some quality astronomy and Hubble Telescope books.

All in all, an enjoyable and in-depth read on an event that had a long buildup and then was over in the course of a few days. Perhaps if we are lucky we will get another chance to witness a planetary impact in our solar system -- and hopefully, NOT on planet Earth!