Finding the Speed of Light: The 1676 Discovery That Dazzled the World (Hardcover) (ISBN-13: 9780884485452)

More than two centuries before Einstein, using a crude telescope and a mechanical timepiece, Danish astronomer Ole Romer measured the speed of light with astounding accuracy. How was he able to do this when most scientists didn't even believe that light traveled? Like many paradigm-shattering discoveries, Romer's was accidental. Night after night he was timing the disappearance and reappearance of Jupiter's moon Io behind the huge, distant planet. Eventually he realized that the discrepancies in his measurements could have only one explanation: Light had a speed, and it took longer to reach Earth when Earth was farther from Jupiter. All he needed then to calculate light's speed was some fancy geometry.

Author: Mark Weston
ISBN-10: 0884485455
ISBN-13: 9780884485452
Publisher: Tilbury House Publishers
Language: English
Published: 03/12/2019
Pages: 32
Format: Hardcover
Weight: 1.10lbs
Size: 9.10h x 11.20w x 0.40d

Accelerated Reader:
Reading Level: 5.1
Point Value: 1
Interest Level: Middle Grade
Quiz #/Name: 504184 / Finding the Speed of Light: The 1676 Discovery That Dazzled the World


Review Citation(s):
Kirkus Reviews 02/01/2019 pg. 163
School Library Journal 06/01/2019 pg. 94
Hornbook Guide to Children 07/01/2019 - Recommended, Satisfactory