The Scale of the Universe

Heber Doust Curtis, Harlow Shapley

Creative Media Partners, LLC, Oct 15, 2018 - History - 48 pages

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it.

This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.

Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. To ensure a quality reading experience, this work has been proofread and republished using a format that seamlessly blends the original graphical elements with text in an easy-to-read typeface.

We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

About the author

Born on a Missouri farm, Harlow Shapley became interested in astronomy by accident. As told by Shapley, he went to the University of Missouri expecting to enroll in the journalism school. However, the school of journalism was not scheduled to open until the following year, so he decided to study astronomy. Shapley earned his Ph.D. from Princeton University and then moved to the Mt. Wilson Observatory. There he did his most celebrated work, such as demonstrating experimentally for the first time that earth is not at the center of the Milky Way galaxy but on the outskirts---once again illustrating that earth does not occupy a central location in the cosmos. Consequently, many of his colleagues and fellow astronomers began referring to Shapley as the "modern Copernicus." In 1921 he became director of the Harvard College Observatory, transforming the observatory into a world-famous institution during his 30-year tenure. Shapley also continued his research program, which included the discovery of the first small galaxies, called the Sculptor and Fornax dwarf galaxies after the constellations in whose direction they are oriented. He was also a well-known writer, lecturer, and public scientist, playing a major role in founding UNESCO.

Bibliographic information

• Title: The Scale of the Universe
• Authors: Heber Doust Curtis, Harlow Shapley
• Publisher: Creative Media Partners, LLC, 2018
• ISBN: 0343257025, 9780343257026
• Length: 48 pages
• Subjects: History / General