Brother Astronomer : Adventures of a Vatican Scientist

by Consolmagno, Guy

• ISBN13: 9780071372312
• ISBN10: 0071372318
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2001-02-12
• Publisher: MCG

Summary

“[A] brilliant defense of science’s place in the religious life (and vice versa).”—Publisher’s Weekly Jesuit Brother Guy Consolmagno’s moving and intellectually playful memoir of a life lived in the active interplay of science and religion is now available in a handsome paperback edition. Blending memoir, science, history, and theology, Consolmagno takes us on a grand adventure. We revisit the infamous “Galileo affair” and see that it didn’t unfold in quite the way we thought. We get a rare glimpse into the world of working scientists and see how scientific discoveries are proposed and advanced. We learn the inside story of the “Mars meteorite”: how can we be sure it’s really from Mars, and why can’t scientists agree on whether or not it contains evidence of life? Brother Astronomer memorably sets forth one scientist’s conviction that the universe may be worth studying only if it is the work of a Creator

Author Biography

Brother Guy Consolmagno, S.J., Ph.D. is an astronomer at the Vatican Observatory where he serves as curator of one of the largest meteorite collections in the world. He obtained his Ph.D. in Planetary Science from the University of Arizona and went on to teach at MIT until 1983, when he joined the Peace Corps. Consolmagno's writing has appeared in numerous journals and magazines, including Leonardo, Jesuits in Science, and Ad Astra. He is also the author of several books, including The Way to the Dwelling of Light and coauthor of Turn Left at Orion.

Table of Contents

Part One: Upon These Rocks.

Chapter 1: Aliens at the Vatican.

Chapter 2: The Case of the Fiery Fingers.

Chapter 3: The Vindication of Mars.

Part Two: The Confession of a Vatican Scientist.

Chapter 4: Precursors of Evil.

Chapter 5: The Rift of Popular Culture.

Chapter 6: Finding God in Creation.

Part Three: Once in a Lifetime.

Chapter 7: Holes in the Sand.

Chapter 8: Call and Response.

Chapter 9: Justice in the Oceans of Europa.

Chapter 10: Would You Baptize an Extraterrestrial?

Part Four: Wide Wild Whiteness.

Chapter 11: Well Met at Ansmet.

Chapter 12: Erebus and Terror.

Chapter 13: Soul on Ice.

Chapter 14: The Easter Egg Hunt.

Chapter 15: Walking in Heaven.

Chapter 16: We've Got Company.

Chapter 17: Acquainted with All My Ways.

Chapter 18: Hunting the White Elephant.

Chapter 19: Northward Ho! The Wagons.