Richard Jarrell – författare

The Biographical Encyclopedia of Astronomers is a unique and valuable resource for historians and astronomers alike. The two volumes include approximately 1550 biographical sketches on astronomers from antiquity to modern times. It is the collective work of about 400 authors edited by an editorial board of 9 historians and astronomers, and provides additional details on the nature of an entry and some summary statistics on the content of entries. This new reference provides biographical information on astronomers and cosmologists by utilizing contemporary historical scholarship.

Individual entries vary from 100 to 1500 words, including the likes of the superluminaries such as Newton and Einstein, as well as lesser-known astronomers like Galileo’s acolyte, Mario Guiducci.

A comprehensive contributor index helps researchers to identify the authors of important scientific topics and treatises.

The discovery in 1987 of a supernova brought to world attention the excellence of Canadian astronomers. As Richard Jarrell explains in this book, the path to excellence has been a long one. Although astronomy has been practised in this country from the earliest days of exploration, its professional status has slowly evolved in much the same way as has the nation itself.

In the period of exploration and early settlement, the practical needs of navigators and surveyors were foremost. Astronomical practitioners – for many used astronomy but few were professional or even amateur astronomers – came from elsewhere. Only when Canada was a settled colony, halfway through the nineteenth century, did its own scientific needs emerge. By the century''s end Canadian astronomy, socially and institutionally unique and independent, had been established: astronomers born and trained in Canada worked in their own organized and funded institutions.

In the twentieth century the story is dominated by the Dominion Observatory, and, in higher education, the University of Toronto. The federal government remained the biggest actor, in employment and funding, first through the observatories, then the National Research Council. The expansion of universities greatly broadened the scope of Canadian astronomy, while the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada, local clubs, literature, planetariums, and museums kept the public informed. By the 1960s Canadian astronomy, though small in size, was as sophisticated as any in the world.

The discovery in 1987 of a supernova brought to world attention the excellence of Canadian astronomers. As Richard Jarrell explains in this book, the path to excellence has been a long one. Although astronomy has been practised in this country from the earliest days of exploration, its professional status has slowly evolved in much the same way as has the nation itself.

In the period of exploration and early settlement, the practical needs of navigators and surveyors were foremost. Astronomical practitioners – for many used astronomy but few were professional or even amateur astronomers – came from elsewhere. Only when Canada was a settled colony, halfway through the nineteenth century, did its own scientific needs emerge. By the century''s end Canadian astronomy, socially and institutionally unique and independent, had been established: astronomers born and trained in Canada worked in their own organized and funded institutions.

In the twentieth century the story is dominated by the Dominion Observatory, and, in higher education, the University of Toronto. The federal government remained the biggest actor, in employment and funding, first through the observatories, then the National Research Council. The expansion of universities greatly broadened the scope of Canadian astronomy, while the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada, local clubs, literature, planetariums, and museums kept the public informed. By the 1960s Canadian astronomy, though small in size, was as sophisticated as any in the world.

Here is the tale of Canada’s intriguing development of the science of Radio Astronomy. In 1946 the lone figure of Arthur Covington started monitoring the radio emission of the Sun, a programme that continues to this day. By the 1960s Canada had progressed to constructing two radio observatories at either ends of the country (the DRAO and the ARO), and universities were coming onboard. The story continues through the dire times for these and follows their fortunes and fates right up to the present, with Canada now playing key roles in billion-dollar international telescope projects. It concludes with the construction and operation of Canada’s own transformational telescope, CHIME. Anecdotes and images throughout the book liven the story.

This book fills a gap in the substantial literature on the history of radio astronomy. Carefully-researched by three experts and based on input by further experts in the field, it documents the extensive scientific and (especially) technical innovations of Canadian scientists and engineers. This includes the important Canadian absolute flux-density calibrations, the critical Canadian contribution to low-frequency radio astronomy and VLBI, and the long-running solar monitoring programme. Frank discussions about the excellent 46-m ARO telescope and its fate lead into considerations of Canada’s contributions to recent international projects – the JCMT, ALMA and the upcoming SKA. The book concludes with a description of CHIME, Canada’s own new-generation radio installation.