Welcome To The Universe Chapter Summaries

Welcome to the Universe shares what Tyson, Strauss and Gott are most passionate about with the hope that it will be contagious and motivate us to explore the universe. The book is divided into three sections, one for each author to enlighten us with what they know and have dedicated years of their lives prior to learning. The book starts off the first section Stars, Planets and Life with Neil deGrasse Tyson including some chapters by Strauss. With his ability to make difficult concepts accessible, his oratory skills and his sense of humor makes this section of the book both funny and informative. From measuring the circumference of the Earth and the distance of the Earth to the Moon with hamburgers to his not yet patented butter gun. He explains everything from the smallest atom to the biggest nebula in space.
Tyson starts off simple, he begins with explaining how they measure things in space known as Astronomical Unit (AU). Then moves on and guides on how scientists learned to measure
Strauss. He takes the reader through the history of how our own galaxy was first mapped and then the discoveries that led to scientists realizing that the Milky Way is only but a small part of the universe. Strauss explains in detail what we're seeing in the images of this section and how to interpret the them. He then goes on to explain that the universe is actually expanding and all galaxies are moving away from each other enabling scientists to estimate the age and theorizing its future. The final section, Einstein and the Universe, by Richard Gott talks about Einstein's relativity and the true story about the Big Bang and to other complex topics. And of course this wouldn't have been a Richard Gott section if he didn't talk about time travel. He explains black holes and "spaghettification" in both humorous and clear way. The last chapter of the book, Gott talks about both the past and what awaits our universe in the