Andrew May – författare

Mars is back. Suddenly everyone - from Elon Musk to Ridley Scott to Donald Trump - is talking about going to the Red Planet.When the Apollo astronauts walked on the Moon in 1969, many people imagined Mars would be next. However NASA's Viking 1, which landed in 1976, was just a robot. The much-anticipated crewed mission failed to materialise, defeated by a combination of technological and political challenges.Four decades after Viking and almost half a century after Apollo technology has improved beyond recognition - as has politics. As private ventures like SpaceX seize centre stage from NASA, Mars has undergone a seismic shift - it's become the prime destination for future human expansion and colonisation.But what's it really like on Mars, and why should anyone want to go there? How do you get there and what are the risks? Astrophysicist and science writer Andrew May answers these questions and more, as he traces the history of our fascination with the Red Planet.

Over 50 years ago, astronomers launched the world's first orbiting telescope. This allowed them to gaze further into outer space and examine anything that appears in the sky above our heads, from comets and planets to galaxy clusters and stars. Since then, almost 100 space telescopes have been launched from Earth and are orbiting our planet, with 26 still active and relaying information back to us.As a result of these space-based instruments, such as NASA's iconic Hubble Space Telescope, we know much more about the universe than we did half a century ago. But why is Hubble, orbiting just 540 kilometres above the Earth, so much more effective than a ground-based telescope? How can a glorified camera tell us not only what distant objects look like, but their detailed chemical composition and three-dimensional structure as well? In Eyes in the Sky, science writer Andrew May takes us on a journey into space to answer these questions and more. Looking at the development of revolutionary instruments, such as Hubble and the James Webb Space Telescope, May explores how such technology has helped us understand the evolution of the Universe.

In recent years, there have been significant developments in detector technologies in the field of astrophysics, requiring lower temperatures with simple self-contained refrigerators. Temperatures in the range of 1K to 50mK are now achieved by using dedicated closed-cycle miniature sorption coolers.This book presents the theoretical and experimental knowledge necessary to design and build your own miniature refrigerators, including both single shot and continuous 1 K, 300 mK and 100 mK coolers, and details how to write the needed design software. This text will be of interest to students and researchers, already familiar with basic physics and thermodynamics, who want to understand how sorption coolers and miniature dilution refrigerators work. Features:The first book dedicated to miniature sorption coolersCovers the basic thermodynamic concepts needed to understand the behavior of liquid helium-3 and liquid helium-4Includes an appendix of Python example codes

In 1841, the Welsh sent their first missionary, Thomas Jones, to evangelise the tribal peoples of the Khasi Hills of north-east India. This book follows Jones from rural Wales to Cherrapunji, the wettest place on earth and now one of the most Christianised parts of India. As colonised colonisers, the Welsh were to have a profound impact on the culture and beliefs of the Khasis. The book also foregrounds broader political, scientific, racial and military ideologies that mobilised the Khasi Hills into an interconnected network of imperial control. Its themes are universal: crises of authority, the loneliness of geographical isolation, sexual scandal, greed and exploitation, personal and institutional dogma, individual and group morality. Written by a direct descendant of Thomas Jones, it makes a significant contribution in orienting the scholarship of imperialism to a much-neglected corner of India, and will appeal to students of the British imperial experience more broadly.

In 1841, the Welsh sent their first missionary, Thomas Jones, to evangelise the tribal peoples of the Khasi Hills of north-east India. This book, available in paperback for the first time, follows Jones from rural Wales to Cherrapunji, the wettest place on earth and now one of the most Christianised parts of India. As colonised colonisers, the Welsh were to have a profound impact on the culture and beliefs of the Khasis. The book also foregrounds broader political, scientific, racial and military ideologies that mobilised the Khasi Hills into an interconnected network of imperial control. Its themes are universal: crises of authority, the loneliness of geographical isolation, sexual scandal, greed and exploitation, personal and institutional dogma, individual and group morality. Written by a direct descendant of Thomas Jones, it makes a significant contribution in orienting the scholarship of imperialism to a much-neglected corner of India, and will appeal to students of the British imperial experience more broadly.

When the amphibious Duplex Drive (DD) Sherman tanks of the 13th/18th Royal Hussars (QMO) touched down on the sand of Sword Beach as the vanguard of the D-Day invasion, ahead of the infantry and Commandos, it was the culmination of an evolution spanning several years. Switching roles from a mounted regiment in India, into a mechanised, armoured cavalry regiment, they fought in France in 1940, then faced an uncertain future, after evacuating through Dunkirk.However, the 13th/18th would subsequently be selected to spearhead the assault on Sword Beach in new, top secret amphibious tanks. Having successfully secured the beach on D-Day, the Regiment became heavily engaged in the battle for Normandy, earning themselves an excellent reputation with the infantry brigades which they supported, before pushing north into the Fatherland. Their casualties from D-Day onwards amounted to 142 Hussars lost, 236 wounded, with many gallantry awards received.In addition to recording the Regiment's achievements during World War II, the story includes the personal testimonies of many of the Regiment's soldiers and officers throughout the war, along with many previously unpublished photographs.

In recent years, there have been significant developments in detector technologies in the field of astrophysics, requiring lower temperatures with simple self-contained refrigerators. Temperatures in the range of 1K to 50mK are now achieved by using dedicated closed-cycle miniature sorption coolers.This book presents the theoretical and experimental knowledge necessary to design and build your own miniature refrigerators, including both single shot and continuous 1 K, 300 mK and 100 mK coolers, and details how to write the needed design software. This text will be of interest to students and researchers, already familiar with basic physics and thermodynamics, who want to understand how sorption coolers and miniature dilution refrigerators work. Features:The first book dedicated to miniature sorption coolersCovers the basic thermodynamic concepts needed to understand the behavior of liquid helium-3 and liquid helium-4Includes an appendix of Python example codes

Extraterrestrial life is a common theme inscience fiction, but is it a serious prospect in the real world? Astrobiologyis the emerging field of science that seeks to answer this question.The possibility of life elsewhere in the cosmosis one of the most profound subjects that human beings can ponder. AstrophysicistAndrew May gives an expert overview of our current state of knowledge, lookingat how life started on Earth, the tell-tale 'signatures' it produces, and howsuch signatures might be detected elsewhere in the Solar System or on the many 'exoplanets'now being discovered by the Kepler and TESS missions.Along the way the book addresses key questions such as the riddle of Fermi'sparadox ('Where is everybody?') and the crucial role of DNA and water - they'reessential to 'life as we know it', but is the same true of alien life? And the reallybig question: when we eventually find extraterrestrials, will they be friendlyor hostile?

As end-of-the-world scenarios go, an apocalyptic collision with anasteroid or comet is the new kid on the block, gaining respectability only inthe last decade of the 20th century with the realisation that the dinosaurs hadbeen wiped out by just such an impact. Now the science community is making up for lost time, withworldwide efforts to track the thousands of potentially hazardous near-Earthobjects, and plans for high-tech hardware that could deflect an incoming objectfrom a collision course - a procedure depicted, with little regard forscientific accuracy, in several Hollywood movies.Astrophysicist and science writer Andrew May disentanglesfact from fiction in this fast-moving and entertaining account, covering thenature and history of comets and asteroids, the reason why some orbits are morehazardous than others, the devastating local and global effects that an impactevent would produce, and - more optimistically - the way future space missionscould avert a catastrophe.

Dreams, schemes and opportunity as space opens for tourism and commerce.Twentieth century space exploration may have belonged to state-funded giants such as NASA, but there is a parallel history which has set the template for the future.Even before Apollo 11 landed on the Moon, private companies were exploiting space via communication satellites - a sector that is seeing exponential growth in the internet age. In human spaceflight, too, commercialisation is making itself felt. Billionaire entrepreneurs Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos and Richard Branson have long trumpeted plans to make space travel a possibility for ordinary people and those ideas are inching ever closer to reality. At the same time, other companies plan to mine the Moon for helium-3, or asteroids for precious metals.Science writer Andrew May takes an entertaining, in-depth look at the triumphs and heroic failures of our quixotic quest to commercialise the final frontier.

A NEW, FULLY ILLUSTRATED EDITION OF ANDREW MAY'S ILLUMINATING GUIDE TO LIFE NOT ON EARTHThe possibility that alien life exists in the universe is among the most profound of human conjectures, which today is being investigated not just by science-fiction writers but by scientists.Astrobiology presents an expert guide to this compelling field of science. It shows how the tell- tale signatures of life on Earth might hold the key to detecting life beyond our planet; explores the many planets beyond our Solar System discovered by NASA's Kepler and TESS missions; and explains alien- hunting touchstones such as Fermi's Paradox, the Drake Equation, and the 'Wow' signal.As NASA's rovers burrow into Mars and its probes peer ever further into the cosmos, this illustrated edition combines deep space images with infographics to cast a scientific eye over the most significant of scientific treasure hunts.

Music is shaped by the science of sound.How can music - an artform - have anything to do with science? Yet there are myriad ways in which the two are intertwined, from the basics of music theory and the design of instruments to hi-fi systems and how the brain processes music.Science writer Andrew May traces the surprising connections between science and music, from the theory of sound waves to the way musicians use mathematical algorithms to create music.The most obvious impact of science on music can be seen in the way electronic technology has revolutionised how we create, record and listen to music. Technology has also provided new insights into the effects that different music has on the brain, to the extent that some algorithms can now predict our reactions with uncanny accuracy, which raises a worrying question: how long will it be before AI can create music on a par with humans?

This book brings together fresh insights into the relationships between missions and indigenous peoples, and the outcomes of mission activities in the processes of imperial conquest and colonisation. Bringing together the work of leading international scholars of mission and empire, the focus is on missions across the British Empire (including India, Africa, Asia, the Pacific), within transnational and comparative perspectives. Themes throughout the contributions include collusion or opposition to colonial authorities, intercultural exchanges, the work of indigenous and local Christians in new churches, native evangelism and education, clashes between variant views of domesticity and parenting roles, and the place of gender in these transformations. Missionaries could be both implicated in the plot of colonial control, in ways seemingly contrary to Christian norms, or else play active roles as proponents of the social, economic and political rights of their native brethren. Indigenous Christians themselves often had a liminal status, negotiating as they did the needs and desires of the colonial state as well as those of their own peoples. In some mission zones where white missionaries were seen to be constrained by their particular views of race and respectability, black evangelical preachers had far greater success as agents of Christianity. This book contains contributions by historians from Australasia and North America who observe the fine grain of everyday life on mission stations, and present broader insights on questions of race, culture and religion. The volume makes a timely intervention into continuing debates about the relationship between mission and empire.

People are used to seeing “fake physics” in science fiction – concepts like faster-than-light travel, antigravity and time travel to name a few.

The 20th century saw radical changes in the way serious music is composed and produced, including the advent of electronic instruments and novel compositional methods such as serialism and stochastic music. Unlike previous artistic revolutions, this one took its cues from the world of science.Creating electronic sounds, in the early days, required a well-equipped laboratory and an understanding of acoustic theory. Composition became increasingly “algorithmic”, with many composers embracing the mathematics of set theory. The result was some of the most intellectually challenging music ever written – yet also some of the best known, thanks to its rapid assimilation into sci-fi movies and TV shows, from the electronic scores of Forbidden Planet and Dr Who to the other-worldly sounds of 2001: A Space Odyssey.This book takes a close look at the science behind "science fiction" music, as well as exploring the way sci-fi imagery found its way into the work of musicians like Sun Ra and David Bowie, and how music influenced the science fiction writings of Philip K. Dick and others.

There is a huge gulf between the real physics of space travel and the way it is commonly portrayed in movies and TV shows. That’s not because space physics is difficult or obscure – most of the details were understood by the end of the 18th century – but because it can often be bafflingly counter-intuitive for a general audience.

From magic carpets to hoverboards and space drives, the human imagination has always seen antigravity as the ultimate aspirational symbol of power over nature. It featured prominently in the technologically optimistic science fiction of the mid-20th century, and remains popular with amateur theorists hoping to make a world-shaking breakthrough, and those seeking to explain UFO sightings in terms of alien technology. Yet the whole concept of antigravity is often derided by professional scientists. Is this a valid view, or are they missing something? This entertaining and thought-provoking book provides a wide-ranging survey of the whole field of antigravity, from science-fictional treatments by the likes of H. G. Wells, Isaac Asimov and Arthur C. Clarke, through speculative research by NASA, universities and the aerospace industry, to the totally different mindset of ufologists, fringe researchers and conspiracy theorists. In a world where our understanding of physics is known to be incomplete, and which has been shaken by numerous paradigm shifts in the past, can we be certain that the discovery of antigravity isn’t just around the corner?

Aliens, flying saucers, ESP, the Bermuda Triangle, antigravity … are we talking about science fiction or pseudoscience? Sometimes it is difficult to tell the difference. Both pseudoscience and science fiction (SF) are creative endeavours that have little in common with academic science, beyond the superficial trappings of jargon and subject matter. The most obvious difference between the two is that pseudoscience is presented as fact, not fiction. Yet like SF, and unlike real science, pseudoscience is driven by a desire to please an audience – in this case, people who “want to believe”. This has led to significant cross-fertilization between the two disciplines. SF authors often draw on “real” pseudoscientific theories to add verisimilitude to their stories, while on other occasions pseudoscience takes its cue from SF – the symbiotic relationship between ufology and Hollywood being a prime example of this. This engagingly written, well researched and richly illustrated text explores a wide range of intriguing similarities and differences between pseudoscience and the fictional science found in SF. Andrew May has a degree in Natural Sciences from Cambridge University and a PhD in astrophysics from Manchester University. After many years in academia and the private sector, he now works as a freelance writer and scientific consultant. He has written pocket biographies of Newton and Einstein, as well as contributing to a number of popular science books. He has a lifelong interest in science fiction, and has had several articles published in Fortean Times magazine

It tells you the best times to view the Moon, the most exciting sights to look out for, and the best equipment to use, allowing you to snap stunning photographs as well as view the sights with your own eyes.

The Cold War saw scientists in East and West racing to create amazing new technologies, the like of which the world had never seen. Yet not everyone was taken by surprise. From super-powerful atomic weapons to rockets and space travel, readers of science fiction (SF) had seen it all before. Sometimes reality lived up to the SF vision, at other times it didn’t. The hydrogen bomb was as terrifyingly destructive as anything in fiction, while real-world lasers didn't come close to the promise of the classic SF ray gun. Nevertheless, when the scientific Cold War culminated in the Strategic Defence Initiative of the 1980s, it was so science-fictional in its aspirations that the media dubbed it “Star Wars”. This entertaining account, offering a plethora of little known facts and insights from previously classified military projects, shows how the real-world science of the Cold War followed in the footsteps of SF – and how the two together changed our perception of both science and scientists, and paved the way to the world we live in today.

Isaac Newton had an extraordinary idea. He believed the physical universe and everything in it could be described in exact detail using mathematical relationships. He formulated a law of gravity that explained why objects fall downwards, how the moon causes the tides, and why planets and comets orbit the sun.While Newton’s work has been added to over the years, his basic approach remains at the heart of the scientific worldview. Yet Newton’s own had little in common with that of a modern scientist. He believed the universe was created to a precise and rational design – a design that was fully understood by the earliest people. Over time this knowledge was lost, and Newton considered it his life’s work to rediscover it, whether through applied mathematics or a painstaking study of the Bible and other ancient texts. In chasing his impossible goal, Newton managed to contribute more to our understanding of the universe than anyone else in history.