By examining the pressing questions the supernova of 1604 prompted, Kepler’s New Star traces the enduring impact of Kepler and his star on the course of modern science.

"The supernova of 1604 marks a major turning point in the cosmological crisis of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Capturing the eyes and imagination of Europe, it ignited an explosion of ideas that forever changed the face of science. Variously interpreted as a comet or star, the new luminary brought together a broad network of scholars who debated the nature of the novelty and its origins in the universe. At the heart of the interdisciplinary discourse was Johannes Kepler, whose book On the New Star (1606) assessed the many disputes of the day. Beginning with several studies about Kepler's book, the authors of the present volume explore the place of Kepler and the 'new star' in early modern culture and religion, and how contemporary debate shaped the course of science down to the present day. Contributors are: (1) Dario Tessicini, (2) Christopher M. Graney, (3) Javier Luna, (4) Patrick J. Boner, (5) Jonathan Regier, (6) Aviva Rothman, (7) Miguel Á. Granada, (8) Pietro Daniel Omodeo, (9) Matteo Cosci, and (10) William P. Blair"--

The cosmology of Johannes Kepler remains a mystery. On the one hand, Kepler’s speculations on spiritual faculties are seen as the remnants of Renaissance philosophy. On the other, his comparison of the cosmos to a clock summons the mechanical metaphor that shaped modern science. This book explores the inseparable connections between Kepler’s vitalistic views and his more enduring accomplishments in astronomy. The key argument is that Kepler’s ‘celestial biology’ served as a bridge between his revolutionary astronomy and other ‘less scientific’ interests, particularly astrology. Kepler's Cosmological Synthesis sheds new light on one of the foundational figures of the Scientific Revolution. By uncovering a new form of coherence in Kepler’s world picture, it traces the unlikely intersections of mechanism and vitalism that transformed the fabric of the heavens.

The Historical Supernovae

The brilliant German mathematician Johannes Kepler (1571-1630), one of the founders of modern astronomy, revolutionized the Copernican heliocentric theory of the universe with his three laws of motion: that the planets move not in circular but elliptical orbits, that their speed is greatest when nearest the sun, and that the sun and planets form an integrated system. This volume contains two of his most important works: The Epitome of Copernican Astronomy (books 4 and 5 of which are translated here) is a textbook of Copernican science, remarkable for the prominence given to physical astronomy and for the extension to the Jovian system of the laws recently discovered to regulate the motions of the Planets. Harmonies of the World (book 5 of which is translated here) expounds an elaborate system of celestial harmonies depending on the varying velocities of the planets.

This book introduces particle physics, astrophysics and cosmology. Starting from an experimental perspective, it provides a unified view of these fields that reflects the very rapid advances being made. This new edition has a number of improvements and has been updated to describe the recent discovery of gravitational waves and astrophysical neutrinos, which started the new era of multimessenger astrophysics; it also includes new results on the Higgs particle. Astroparticle and particle physics share a common problem: we still don’t have a description of the main ingredients of the Universe from the point of view of its energy budget. Addressing these fascinating issues, and offering a balanced introduction to particle and astroparticle physics that requires only a basic understanding of quantum and classical physics, this book is a valuable resource, particularly for advanced undergraduate students and for those embarking on graduate courses. It includes exercises that offer readers practical insights. It can be used equally well as a self-study book, a reference and a textbook.