by Dava Sobel
planet-inspired, 162–63, 166n–69
Naiad (moon of Neptune), 207
Neptune, 195–99
chemical composition of, 204–5
discovery of, 41, 195–97
formation of, 17
heat generated by, 206–7
as ice planet, 20, 204–5
magnetic field of, 205
moons of, 198, 207
in night sky, 22
orbit of, 198n
relationship to Uranus, 197–99, 209–10, 217
rings of, 178, 207–8
rotation of, 206
size of, 204
Voyager 2, 207–8
Nereid (moon of Neptune), 207
New Horizons, 225
Newton, Sir Isaac, 41, 43, 145
Oberon (moon of Uranus), 203
Ocean of Storms (Moon), 108
Olympus Mons (Mars), 126
Ophelia (moon of Uranus), 203
Pan (moon of Saturn), 233
Pangaea, 96
Panthalassa, 96
Periodic Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9, 152–53
Peters, Christian, 42
Phobos (moon of Mars), 130
Pigafetta, Antonio, 82
Pioneer 10, 8
Planetai (wanderers), 31
Planets
creation of, 16–17
Greek conception of, 31–33
heated by Sun, 20
speed and Sun, 20
See also individual planets
Planets, Suite for Orchestra (Holst), 162–63, 167–69
Plato, 33, 165
Planetesimals, 16–18, 225–26
Pluto, 211–28
atmosphere of, 223–24
discovery of, 209, 214–16
formation of, 17
as frozen planet, 20, 224–25
Pluto (cont.)
illumination by Sun, 224
in Kuiper Belt, 219–21, 225–27
moon of, 8–9, 217, 221–23
New Horizons, 225
orbit of, 220–21
rotation of, 221
status as planet, 9, 217–19
surface features, 224
viewing difficulty, 22, 216–17
Principia Mathematica (Newton), 41
Proteus (moon of Neptune), 207
Protoplanetary disks, 179
Proto-solar nebula, 15–16
Ptolemy, 33–34, 40, 71–75
Pythagoras, 164–65, 175
Quaoar (Kuiper Belt object), 220
Ring systems
and cosmic design, 179
Jupiter, 178
Neptune, 178, 207–8
Saturn. See Saturnian rings
Uranus, 178, 181–204, 209
Roche, Edouard, 174
Roche zone, 174
Saturn, 168–79
Cassini, 175, 229–34
chemical composition of, 169, 178
formation of, 17
magnetic field, 178
moons of, 174–77
rings of. See Saturnian rings
rotation of, 178
size of, 204
Saturnian rings, 168–72
Cassini Division, 171, 177
composition of, 169
constant changes to, 178–79
discovery of, 170–71
edgewise, 169–70
Encke Division, 177
formation of, 173–74
Galileo’s observation of, 170
Huygens’s diagram of, 171
Maxwell’s concept of, 172–73
size of, 168
Schiaparelli, Giovanni, 43–45
Sea of Calm (Moon), 108
Sea of Crises (Moon), 107
Sedna (planetoid), 227
Shooting stars, 23n
Solar minimum/maximum, 24–25
Solar System
development of, 14–16
division of, 16–17
habitable zone, 20
planets, formation of, 16–17
third zone, 219
Solar wind, 25–26
Solitudo Hermae Trismegisti (Mercury), 44–45
Spring tides, 112–13
Sputnik, 7–8
Star formation, and Big Bang, 14–15
Sun, 13–28
aging of, 18–19
creation of, 15–16
light of, 23–24
planets, heating of, 20
rotation of, 25
size of, 19
solar wind, 25–26
and speed of planets, 20
sunspots, 24–25
total solar eclipse, 27–28
Systema Saturnium (Huygens), 171
Tectonic plates, 97–98
Terraforming, 137–38
Terra Incognita, 91
Tesserae (Venus), 68
Thalassa (moon of Neptune), 207
Thales of Meletus, 33
Tides and moon, 111–14
Titan (moon of Saturn), 220, 232–33
Titania (moon of Uranus), 203
Tombaugh, Clyde, 205, 214–16
Triton (moon of Neptune), 198n, 207
Two New Sciences (Galileo), 175
Uranus, 180–93, 199–210
acceleration/deceleration, 197–98
chemical composition of, 204–205
discovery of, 181n–91, 183n, 201–2
eclipse of star (1977), 202, 209
formation of, 17
as ice planet, 20, 204–205
magnetic field of, 205
moons of, 203–4
naming of, 187–88
in night sky, 22
orbit of, 190–1, 206
relationship to Neptune, 197–99, 209–10, 217
rings of, 178, 201–4, 209
rotation of, 205–6
size of, 204
Uranus telescope, 185n
Utopia (Mars), 133
Valles Marineris (Mars), 127, 134
Varuna (Kuiper Belt object), 220
Venera, 69
Venus, 49–70
acid rain of, 61–62
ancient concept of, 55–56
atmosphere of, 59–60, 61–62, 70
brightness of, 50–53
compared to Earth, 57–60
formation of, 16
illumination by Sun, 22, 51
Venus (cont.)
Magellan images, 64–70
in mythology, 55–56
orbit of, 55
rotation of, 61–63
surface features, 64–69
temperature of, 60–61
transit of (1761), 88–89
transit of (1769), 88–91
transit of (1882), 65, 99
transit of (2004), 99
Venera images, 68
Venus shadow, 54
visibility from Earth, 50–54
Venus (Roman goddess), 56
Viking, 133–35
Virga, 62
Voyager missions, 164–65, 203, 207–8
Vulcan (Roman god), 42
Water
Earth, 74–75, 84, 96
Jupiter, 155–56
Mars, 127
Wegener, Alfred, 96
Willamette Valley (Oregon) meteorite, 6–7
Year Star (Jupiter), 150–51
Ymir (moon of Saturn), 233n