Human Cosmos: A Secret History of the Stars

The Human Cosmos explores the history of humanity's relationship with the heavens, revealing how celestial cycles shaped our religious beliefs, power structures, scientific advances, and biology. Over the last few centuries, we have disconnected from the universe, and this disconnect comes at a cost. Jo Marchant takes us on a journey to rediscover the full potential of the universe, its wonder, its effect on our health, and its potential for inspiration and revelation.

Format: Hardback
Length: 368 pages
Publication date: 03 September 2020
Publisher: Canongate Books Ltd

For most of human history, we have lived not just an earthly existence but a cosmic one. Celestial cycles have driven every aspect of our daily lives. Our innate relationship with the stars shaped who we are - our religious beliefs, power structures, scientific advances, and even our biology. But over the last few centuries, we have separated ourselves from the universe that surrounds us. And that disconnection comes at a cost.

In The Human Cosmos, Jo Marchant takes us on a journey through the history of humanity's relationship with the heavens. We travel to the Hall of the Bulls in Lascaux and witness the winter solstice at a 5,000-year-old tomb at Newgrange. We visit Medieval monks grappling with the nature of time and Tahitian sailors navigating by the stars. We discover how light reveals the chemical composition of the sun, and we are with Einstein as he works out that space and time are one and the same. A four-billion-year-old meteor inspires a search for extraterrestrial life. And we discover why stargazing can be really, really good for us.

It is time for us to rediscover the full potential of the universe we inhabit, its wonder, its effect on our health, and its potential for inspiration and revelation.

Weight: 458g
Dimension: 143 x 222 x 36 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781786894021
Edition number: Main