A Short History of Nearly Everything

 

A Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson 544 pp.

Bill Bryson takes on the history of our world from before the beginning. The focus begins with the creation of the universe and the various theories leading to and about the Big Bang. The story then moves on to the solar system, the Earth's changing geology, plate tectonics, volcanos, etc.. Finally Bryson moves on to the evolution of the first creatures and eventually Homo sapiens. Interspersed in these scientific theories are the stories of the scientists who spent hundreds of years trying to explain it all and the conflicts and arguments over who was correct. I found the science in this book fascinating because of the bits I didn't know and anecdotes about the personalities of those who did the research. But I admit that, had I not listened to the unabridged audiobook version, I probably never would have finished it.  

The Interstellar Age: Inside the Forty-Year Voyager Mission

The Interstellar Age: Inside the Forty-Year Voyager Mission by Jim Bell, 324 pages.
Voyager I and Voyager II were both launched in 1977 to take advantage of a rare planetary alignment. Once every 176 years, the outer planets of our solar system line up in such a way that a probe launched from Earth could, in one go, fly a path Voyager I launched on September 5, 1977 and flew by Jupiter, Saturn, Each flight path had to be meticulously plotted, taking into account the trajectory past each planet, slingshotting towards the craft's next destination, while obtaining the most data possible as each planet and moon was flown past, all while keeping in communication with Earth. Voyager I flew by Jupiter and its moons, Io, Ganymede, and Callisto, before continuing on to Saturn and its moons, including a close pass by Titan. Voyager II had a similar flight path, but if Voyager I had a successful pass by Titan (as it did), Voyager II would use energy from passing closer to Saturn and continue on towards Uranus and Neptune. Bell tells of his personal interactions with Voyager, from watching the news in 1977, to small astronomy-related jobs in college in 1980, to professional and friendly conversations with Voyager team members in his roles as a Professor of Astronomy at Cornell, and as President of the Planetary Society. The Voyager missions discovered many things, moons reformed to a smooth surface by unknown forces, rings around Uranus and eruptions and ultracold cryovolcanic flows on distant icy moons. A fascinating book.