A treatise on spherical astronomy
Author(s)
Bibliographic Information
A treatise on spherical astronomy
（Cambridge library collection, . Astronomy）
Cambridge University Press, 2013
- : pbk.
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Note
Reprint. Originally published: Cambridge : The Univ. Press, 1908
"This digitally printed version 2013"--T.p. verso
Description and Table of Contents
Description
Spherical or positional astronomy is used primarily to map objects on the celestial sphere. In this technical work, first published in 1908 and intended for advanced students, Sir Robert Stawell Ball (1840-1913) breaks down the field into distinct areas of study. Assuming a good level of geometry and trigonometry, he begins with fundamental formulae before moving into the determination of coordinates, atmospheric refraction, the theory of cartography, and more. Each section contains exercises derived from a variety of sources, including contemporary Cambridge examinations. The coverage ranges from the calculation of stellar parallax to the geometrical principles behind the Mercator projection. Testifying to the knowledge expected of university students in the early twentieth century, Ball's book remains instructive to their modern counterparts. More accessible to the general reader, The Story of the Heavens (1885), Star-Land (1889) and A Popular Guide to the Heavens (1905) are also reissued in this series.
Table of Contents
- Preface
- 1. Fundamental formulae
- 2. The use of spherical coordinates
- 3. The figure of the earth and map making
- 4. The celestial sphere
- 5. Right ascension and declination
- 6. Atmospheric reflection
- 7. Kepler's and Newton's laws and their application
- 8. Precession and nutation
- 9. Sidereal time and mean time
- 10. The sun's apparent annual motion
- 11. The aberration of light
- 12. The geocentric parallax of the moon
- 13. The geocentric parallax of the sun
- 14. On the transit of a planet across the sun
- 15. The annual parallax of stars
- 16. Eclipses of the moon
- 17. Eclipses of the sun
- 18. Occultation of stars by the moon
- 19. Problems involving sun or moon
- 20. Planetary phenomena
- 21. The generalized instrument
- 22. The fundamental instruments of the observatory
- Index and glossary.
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