Description

pp. iv, 308, plus B/W line maps, “Ancient peoples believed the aurora borealis, or northern lights, to be messengers of the gods or the souls of the dead until Norwegian scientist Kristian Birkeland offered the first correct explanation that they were caused by cathode rays from the sun, accompanied by magnetic perturbations. Pursuing a lifelong quest, Birkeland studied, measured, and recorded this phenomenon in some of the bleakest locations and most difficult terrains in the world from Norway’s icy mountains to Africa’s deserts. Against the backdrop of these arduous conditions, Birkeland also dealt with marriage and divorce, political tumult and war, and the nefarious actions of his business partner, who took credit for Birkeland’s invention of an electromagnetic furnace and later undermined his chance for a Nobel prize nomination. Birkeland’s once overlooked theories are now being reassessed as prophetic and considered an essential element in understanding electromagnetism, comets, and the sun. Instead of a stiff, scholarly biography, British journalist Jago has written a poignantly human story filled with minute, extensively researched details, from a description of the wallpaper in Birkeland’s observatory to his courtship and married life. In readable prose, she relates complex scientific concepts and places Birkeland’s discoveries and contributions in a place of prominence.”