History of Astronomy

History of Astronomy, but George Forbes, was first published in 1909. The historical portions of the book are helpful in understanding the viewpoint of the astronomers who's efforts laid the foundation for astronomy. The author dealt with historical figures fairly, never taking the point of view that if it isn't modern what they found was just dumb luck. The projections the book makes about future developments in astronomy show us how far our current projections can err. In his book, Forbes helps put our limited knowledge of the great beyond back into perspective. The history of the entire concept of the "Milky Way."Forbes divides astronomy into three epochs. The first is geometric, in which the heavens are considered as a problem of shapes and epicycles, and circular motion becomes almost an object of worship. The second age is ushered in by Kepler and Newton and is considered dynamic. The third is the 'physical' age and concerns the measurement and detailed mapping of celestial objects. This age is the fruit of modern chemistry and the aforementioned advances in photography and spectroscopy.