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All papers have been peer-reviewed. Our star is a very effective particle accelerator. Energies up to GeVs have been observed in Solar energetic particle events. These events are often associated with solar flares and/or Coronal Mass Ejections. Understanding how particles are accelerated in these phenomena has been an outstanding problem in space plasma physics for a long time. Part of the reason is its practical (e.g. Space weather) and fundamental (cosmic ray origin) importance. In this conference we review recent progresses on this problem, with a balance between observations, theories and numerical simulations. Specific topics include 1) particle acceleration at flare site, 2) turbulence properties of the solar wind, 3) particle acceleration and transport in the inner heliosphere, 4) particle acceleration at the termination shock and heliosheath, and 5) particle acceleration at supernova remnant shocks.

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This conference explored the formation, life, and death of the earliest stars (also known as Population III stars) and their impact on subsequent structure formation and chemical evolution of the universe. First Stars III covered a wide range of observational topics, including star formation, stellar evolution, supernovae, and the search for primordial and metal-poor stars in the galactic halo.

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For more than three decades, gamma-ray bursts have grown from an oddity to a central topic in astrophysics. Not only are they the largest explosions since the big bang, capable of flooding most of the universe with gamma-rays, but their brilliance serves as a backlight that can illuminate the cosmos far deeper into the early universe than any other object. Their unpredictability has forced researchers to use extreme measures to observe them: completely autonomous satellites and robotic ground-based telescopes. Their bizarre physical properties have required new theories on massive explosions.

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All papers have been peer-reviewed. Chemical elements are fundamental matter to comprise the universe and hold a great deal of interest for astronomers and nuclear physicists, for these play an important role in understanding the dawn of the universe to the formation of solar system. This volume contains the proceedings of the symposium that aims to understand the origin and evolution of the universe through the current knowledge of nuclear astrophysics.

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The main purpose of the 2nd Topical Workshop on Low Radioactivity Techniques was to share the knowledge on techniques and developments aiming at ultra-low level backgrounds. Extremely low backgrounds are needed for searches looking for rare events such as dark matter, neutrinoless double beta decay or solar neutrinos. Experts from all over the world have participated in this Workshop. The articles gathered in this proceeding are unique since they provide technical details on low radioactivity techniques developments. Researchers working in this field will find essential information in these articles. ... Read more

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This symposium was the first in a series of meetings devoted to the science of the Gamma-ray Large Area Space Telescope (GLAST), yet it was also a successor of the five remarkable Compton Symposia and subsequent Gamma2001 meeting. The GLAST Symposia provide an essential forum for exchange of ideas and information across a broad range of scientific investigations. GLAST, NASA's new gamma-ray observatory to be launched within the next year, will open a wide new window on the universe. Gamma rays are the highest-energy form of electromagnetic radiation, and the gamma-ray sky is spectacularly different from what we perceive with our own eyes. With a huge leap in all key capabilities, GLAST data will enable scientists to answer persistent questions across a broad range of topics, including supermassive black hole systems, pulsars, gamma-ray bursts, the origin of cosmic rays, and searches for signals of new physics. An astro-particle physics partnership, GLAST was developed in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Energy, along with important contributions from France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and Sweden. More information can be found at http://glast.gsfc.nasa.gov/ and at links therein.

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All papers were peer-reviewed. This volume summarizes the views of many world-renowned experts on a broad spectrum of topics involving magnetic fields, from the scale of laboratory plasma experiments to astrophysics and cosmology. It includes updated reviews and new results on hot topics on the interdisciplinary boundary between plasma physics and astrophysics, so that it can be a rather useful reference not only for senior researchers but also for graduate students involved with the investigation of plasma astrophysics and cosmic magnetic fields. Highlights of the works included in this volume are: (1) the recent progress on the measurements of magnetic fields in our Galaxy and other galaxies, and in star formation regions; (2) the construction of new numerical tools for multidimensional simulations of MHD flows with several astrophysical applications; (3) recent advances on the comprehension of the effects of magnetic fields in stellar and solar activity, star! formation and evolution, compact objects, accretion physics, production and propagation of jets and winds, origin and propagation of cosmic rays, and production of gamma ray bursts; (4) laboratory and astrophysical plasmas connections; (6) the interplay between turbulence and magnetic fields in the interstellar medium and space plasmas; (7) the implications of magnetic reconnection on particle acceleration, star formation, and solar flares; and (8) the recent advances in dynamo theories for the origin of stellar, galactic, and primordial magnetic fields. A new powerful numerical tool for multidimensional numerical simulations of magnetohydrodynamical flows is described in two papers in these proceedings (see pp. 16-26 and 475-488). ... Read more

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The Institute of Particle and Nuclear Studies in KEK (High Energy Accelerator Research Organization) has created a new research group for theoretical studies of high energy cosmophysics as the integrated field of astrophysics, gravitational physics and cosmology this year. The main mission of the group is to challenge fundamental unsolved problems in cosmophysics that can be solved only through interplays among fundamental physics, high energy physics and cosmophysics and eventually to make experimental and observational proposals for the discovery of novel aspects of Nature. This cosmophysics group held its inaugural conference in March 2008. The main purpose was to overview the present status and future prospects of high energy cosmophysics with both cosmophysicists and high energy experimentalists and to gain insights about what KEK can gain from and contribute to high energy cosmophysics.

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This book contains the peer-reviewed papers presented at the Sixth Annual International Astrophysics Conference. This conference brought together a range of topics that shed light on our understanding and status of turbulence and nonlinear processes in astrophysical plasmas. Coverage in this volume includes turbulent relaxation in laboratory and space plasmas and its application to coronal flux tubes, coronal heating, and the diffusion of energetic particles. ... Read more

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Information published in these Proceedings books will be useful for researcher working in Astronomy and Astrophysics, mainly in the field of observational and theoretical studies of compact objects (such as super-massive and stellar mass black holes, highly and weakly magnetized neutron stars, and white dwarfs, isolated or in binary systems, Galactic or extra-galactic) and their progenitors or end points (such as Supernovae and Gamma-ray Bursts).

All papers have been peer-reviewed. These two Proceedings books contain the scientific discussions that more than one hundred scientists from all over the world have had during a two-weeks conference held in Cefalù (in the beautiful island of Sicily, Italy) from 11 to 24 June 2006. Oral contributions and posters were presented at the conference dealing with the astrophysics of compact objects, such as super-massive and stellar mass black holes, highly and weakly magnetized neutron stars, and white dwarfs, both isolated and in binary systems, and of their progenitors or end-points, such as Supernovae and Gamma Ray Bursts. In particular the meeting (and the following Proceedings books) are focused on several scientific areas that are briefly described in the following.

The first volume starts with the discussion of the so-called GAMMA RAY BURSTS (GRBs), which are among the most violent explosions in the Universe, most probably related to the final stages of the life of a massive star and the formation of a black hole, or to the coalescence of two neutron stars in a close binary system. In particular we discuss the globalproperties of long and short GRBs and of their Afterglows, the relation between GRBs and Cosmology, the connection to particular types of Supernovae, as well as present and future instrumentation. Then we discuss the so-called MAGNETAR CANDIDATES, which are neutron stars with very large magnetic fields (above 10^13 Gauss) showing coherent X-ray pulsations. These are usually observed as Anomalous X-ray Pulsars or Soft Gamma Repeaters. This last class of objects show sometimes very powerful soft gamma-ray outbursts from which a connection to the GRBs phenomenon has been proposed. The first volume ends with the discussion of the properties of SUPERNOVAE, which are connected tothe GRBs and are often the progenitors of collapsed objects.

In the second volume of the Proceedings we discuss the properties of PULSARS and millisecond pulsars. In particular, an update of the recently discovered double neutron star system is presented, were it is shown that with this system the theory of General Relativity has been tested with a precision of 0.05%, becoming the most precise physical theory to date. The discussion continues with the observational and theoretical properties of INTERACTING BINARIES containing white dwarfs, neutron stars or black hole candidates.

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This conference was in celebration of the 40th anniversary of the discovery of radio pulsars in the summer of 1967. The conference highlighted the important discoveries of the last 40 years and addressed the most interesting and topical areas of neutron star astrophysics today. These areas included pulsar searches and timing, accretion and neutron-star recycling, millisecond pulsars in the field and in globular clusters, young neutron stars including magnetars, traditional Crab-like pulsars, and isolated neutron stars, glitches, precession, and nulling, as well as binary pulsars, including the double pulsar, constraints on mass, radius, and equation of state of neutron stars, as well as discussion of new and future instrumentation. The conference was opened by a talk about the discovery of pulsars by Nobel-Prize winner Antony Hewish, and throughout the conference there were brief anecdotal talks from eminent pulsar researchers, giving their personal recollections of important moments in pulsar history.

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The VI Serbian Conference on Spectral Line Shapes in Astrophysics was about the investigation of spectral line shapes in extragalactic objects, such as, active galactic nuclei, stellar atmospheres, and astrophysical spectra in general. Atomic spectral line shapes in various discharges and plasma devices was also discussed. The main purpose of the Conference was to present and discuss new results found by participants working in this research field, and to review significant topics. ... Read more

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The Kodaikanal School on Solar Physics offered and intensive two week course on topics related to the Physics of the Sun. The school had a truly international character and was attended by both students and lecturers from different parts of the globe. The course was aimed at Ph.D. students or final year M.Sc (physics) students interested in solar physics and who want to pursue it further. The purpose of the school was to provide an introduction to solar physics for students who do not have an opportunity to take such a course at their homeinstitutions. There were 42 lectures, 5 evening seminars, 10 observation oriented projects, and three computer lab exercises. The students were given the opportunity to observe the Sun with the existing facilities in the observatory.

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This monograph, which grew out of a series of lectures delivered by Stephen Wiggins at the Fields Institute in early 1993, is concerned with the geometrical viewpoint of the global dynamics of nonlinear dynamical systems. With appropriate examples and concise explanations, Wiggins unites many different topics into one volume and makes a unique contribution to the field. Engineers, physicists, chemists, and mathematicians who work on issues related to the global dynamics of nonlinear dynamical systems will find these lectures very useful. ... Read more

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This is a study and translation of the Zhou bi suan jing, a Chinese work on astronomy and mathematics that reached its final form around the first century AD. The author provides the first easily accessible introduction to the developing mathematical and observational practices of ancient Chinese astronomers and shows how the generation and validation of knowledge about the heavens in Han dynasty China related closely to developments in statecraft and politics. This book will be fascinating reading for scholars in the history of science, Chinese history, and astronomy. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Excellent history of science
Don't let the title fool you.This is not just about China, this is about the human condition.Someone with an imagination should have worked on the title and given it a bit more excitement. I almost skipped reading the book because the title seemed so dry.

I read this book twice and will probably read it, again.The author's presentation is simply masterful.Step by step, he recreates the setting and background for the book's creation and utilization.In fact, he walks the reader through about 2000 years of 'uses' that people found for the book.According to Cullen, this classic was probably a gift to a Chinese emperor and then dumped in a back room for 200 years.It was only when political circumstances changed and an 'old' book might be valuable that it was 'rediscovered' and rendered useful.

For anyone interested in the practice of ancient astronomy, Cullen goes into great detail on the tools and practice of Chinese astronomers from about 3000 BC to the arrival of Jesuits in 1600.For anyone interested in Chinese political history, Cullen explores imperial Chinese history in a way that simply makes one want to read much, much more.For anyone interested in ancient Chinese record keeping, Cullen offers practical advice on what to make of the 'documents' we moderns discover.

I hope they make this a paperback so that it can get wider circulation.What is commonly called 'the history of math' is often embarrassingly western (ethno-centric). This book offers a means of correcting that unfortunate state of affairs.

Sweeps away all New Age psychobabble
An eminently readable, entertaining, and fascinating look at a premier text of ancient Chinese science. Cullen provides an excellent analysis of this important document, including its history, authorship, and meaning. The diagrams are clear and crisp, the writing cogent and witty. You can't go wrong with this one. ... Read more

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Why does the starlit sky hold such a profound fascination for us?
Perhaps because it is there that we encounter, commingled, the mystery of light and darkness two primal experiences connected with the beginning and end of human life.

Perhaps it comes from seeing the order, both overt and occult, in the movement of celestial spheres, with which we sense ourselves secretly involved.

Perhaps it is because we feel so small before the starry universe and in this way we begin to become aware within ourselves of the grand questions regarding our existence and our passing through life.

Why are there telescopes on the roof of the Pope's Summer home in Castel Gandolfo?

For more than 100 years, the Vatican has supported an astronomical observatory. But that should come as no surprise; from even before the Gregorian Reform of the Calendar in 1582, indeed dating back to the invention of the University (where studying astronomy was a requirement for anyone wanting a doctorate in philosophy or theology!) the Church has not only supported astronomical research...it has seen the study of the Heavens as a way of getting to know the Creator!

In honor of the International Year of Astronomy, the Vatican and its Observatory is delighted to present this small expression of support, filled with beautiful images from the Vatican's telescopes and wisdom from the Popes, to show that indeed. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Exalting beauty
An interesting history of the Vatican Observatory.The articles are informative and inspiring, the pictures are
exquisitely beautiful.

Haven't read it but my dad liked it
I bought this for my dad for Christmas and he seems to like it.I saw the author on The Colbert Report and thought, "hey, my dad is both a devout Catholic and an astronomy enthusiast".It's more of a coffee table book but I was impressed by the author and thought it would be right up Dad's alley.He tells me it was a great choice so I guess I can recommend it to anyone interested in astronomy, the Vatican, or a Catholic perspective on the Universe.

Copy Edit
I bought this book as a Christmas present for my wife.The book is beautiful as everybody else has indicated and my wife states that it is a good read and interesting. She likes the book as it combines her interests in science and faith

That being said, my wife who has considered becoming a copy editor, is constantly reading sentences to me from the book with the prefix, "What is wrong with this sentence?"In all honesty, *I* would have never picked up on the errors, but if you are a linguistic savant, you might be bothered by some of the issues that bothers her.Overall she is happy with the book, but as she put it, "it's a shame that such a beautiful book is tarnished by such poor copy editing."

Great blend of Astronomy and Religion
I will admit, I am a little bias.I am a practicing Roman Catholic and a self-proclaimed amateur astronomer.
However, I think this book is incredible.It was put together well with gorgeous pictures taken from the Vatican's observatory.
It does not force one to to believe one way or the other, but it does show how religion and science can co-exist in a
symbiotic relationship....it blends the two, well.

I would definitely recommend this for anyone who practices their faith regardless if you are Catholic.

The Heaven's Proclaim
I recently received an e-mail from Amazon.com inviting me to write a review for a book I had purchased from them, "The Heavens Proclaim."I am delighted to oblige. 1.) because it's a great book. 2.) because it's edited by my son, Brother Guy Consolmagno of the Vatican Observatory.

As a collection of articles on various aspects of astronomy by a dozen astronomers, the book is the equivalent of an overview college course on the subject. It also explains the Vatican's centuries-old interest in Astronomy.The book is a large coffee-table tome, beautifully printed and stunningly illistrated.it cost me $26 from Amazon. And Guy's tuition at MIT. ... Read more