Chasing Venus

Andrea Wulf was born in India and moved to Germany as a child. She lives in London and is the author of several books, including The Invention of Nature: Alexander von Humboldt’s New World (Winner of the 2015 Costa Biography Award and the 2016 Royal Society Science Book Prize) and Magnificent Rebels: The First Romantics and the Invention of the Self. A member of PEN American Center and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, she is currently a Miller Scholar at the Santa Fe Institute.

"Andrea Wulf's story of the chase is an enthralling, nail-biting thriller and will undoubtedly prove one of the non-fiction books of the year. Even if you fail to see the Transit, don't miss this wonderful book" -- John Harding Daily Mail "A fine example of scientific storytelling about astronomers of the Enlightenment observing the transit of Venus ... narrated with elegant expertise." -- Iain Finlayson The Times "Historian Andrea Wulf's Chasing Venus is beautifully paced, alternating between expe-ditions, with lush descriptions of the often arduous journeys involved." Nature "[a] truly excellent book...Andrea Wulf tell[s] the rip-roaring tales of numerous expeditions that set off around the globe to observe the Venusian transit of 1761...[She] communicate[s] the verve and energy - not to mention the perilous nature - of the expeditions." -- Marcus Chown New Scientist "It charts the story of a truly international effort; to not only observe the transit ... but to present the real quest that was to finally determine the distance between the Earth and the Sun ... [an] outstanding book! It's the book of the year so far - do not miss it!" Astronomy Now