Impey, Christopher D.
RESOURCE: Impey, Christopher D.
ContributorsChristopher D. Impey, Ph.D.
Professor
Department of Astronomy/Steward Observatory
University of Arizona
Tucson Arizona, USA.
Homepage
Research Interests
- Active Galactic Nuclei
- Astrobiology
- Cosmology
- Extragalactic Astronomy
- Galactic Astronomy
- Infrared Astronomy
Awards
- Recipient of The Astronomical Society of the Pacific's "2008 Richard H. Emmons Award for excellence in college astronomy teaching."
Books
"The Living Cosmos: Our Search for Life in the Universe" Written by Chris Impey.
"The Living Cosmos: Our Search for Life in the Universe"
Written by Chris Impey.
ISBN: 978-1-58836-702-0 (1-58836-702-9)
Imprint: Random House.
Published: December 11, 2007.
About the book
Astrobiology–the study of life in space–is one of today’s fastest growing and most popular fields of science. In this compelling, accessible, and elegantly reasoned new book, award-winning scholar and researcher Chris Impey explores the foundations of this rapidly developing discipline, where it’s going, and what it’s likely to find.
The journey begins with the earliest steps of science, gaining traction through the revelations of the Renaissance, including Copernicus’s revolutionary declaration that the Earth was not the center of the universe but simply a planet circling the sun. But if Earth is not the only planet, it is so far the only living one that we know of. In fascinating detail, The Living Cosmos reveals the incredible proliferation and variety of life on Earth, paying special tribute to some of its hardiest life forms, extremophiles, a dizzying array of microscopic organisms compared, in Impey’s wise and humorous prose, to superheroes that can survive extreme heat and cold, live deep within rocks, or thrive in pure acid.
From there, Impey launches into space, where astrobiologists investigate the potential for life beyond our own world. Is it to be found on Mars, the “death planet” that has foiled most planetary missions, and which was wet and temperate billions of years ago? Or on Venus, Earth’s “evil twin,” where it rains sulfuric acid and whose heat could melt lead? (“Whoever named it after the goddess of love had a sorry history of relationships.”) The answer may lie in a moon within our Solar System, or it may be found in one of the hundreds of extra-solar planets that have already been located. The Living Cosmos sees beyond these explorations, and imagines space vehicles that eschew fuel for solar- or even nuclear-powered rockets, all sent by countries motivated by the millions to be made in space tourism.
But The Living Cosmos is more than just a riveting work about experiment and discovery. It is also an affecting portrait of the individuals who have devoted their lives to astrobiology. Illustrated throughout, The Living Cosmos is a revelatory book about a science that is changing our view of the universe, a mesmerizing guide to what life actually means and where it may–or may not–exist, and a stunning work that explains our past as it predicts our future. (From the Hardcover edition.)
About the Author
Chris Impey, recipient of eleven teaching awards at the University of Arizona, is the youngest person ever to be awarded the position of University Distinguished Professor there. In 2002, he was named the National Science Foundation Distinguished Teaching Scholar by the Carnegie Foundation, and in 2005 was selected a Galileo Circle Scholar, the College of Science’s highest honor. Impey has had fourteen projects approved for observations with the Hubble Space Telescope. He is co-author of Astronomy: The Cosmic Journey and The Universe Revealed. He currently serves as vice president of the American Astronomical Society. He lives in Tucson, Arizona. (From the Hardcover edition.)
Blog
Living in the Universe is a blog on the topic of astrobiology. The audio version of this blog is a podcast by the same name. Your author and commentator is Chris Impey. I’m a Professor of Astronomy at the University of Arizona. Stories are adapted from news items found across the web. Astrobiology is one of the most exciting disciplines in all of science, trying to ask one of the biggest questions we can ask about the universe: Is there life elsewhere? I’m a cosmologist by training, but I have a strong side interest in astrobiology. I teach the subject, and I’ve written a popular book on astrobiology for Random House, called “The Living Cosmos.” Astrobiology is also fun because it’s highly interdisciplinary. At a conference you might find planetary scientists rubbing shoulders with cosmologists, philosophers, biologists, chemists, paleontologists, and geologists.
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