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The Solar System © 2016, 2013, 2011 Cengage Learning
Ninth Edition
WCN: 02-200-203
Michael A. Seeds and Dana E. Backman
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Dedication
In memory of Edward & Antonette Backman and Emery & Helen Seeds
Brief Contents
Part 1: Exploring the Sky
CHAPTER 1 HERE AND NOW 1
CHAPTER 2 A USER’S GUIDE TO THE SKY 11
CHAPTER 3 MOON PHASES AND ECLIPSES 33
CHAPTER 4 ORIGINS OF MODERN ASTRONOMY 52
CHAPTER 5 GRAVITY 79
CHAPTER 6 LIGHT AND TELESCOPES 103
Part 2: The Stars

CHAPTER 7 ATOMS AND SPECTRA 130
CHAPTER 8 THE SUN 147
CHAPTER 9 PERSPECTIVE: ORIGINS 175
Part 3: The Solar System

CHAPTER 10 ORIGIN OF THE SOLAR SYSTEM AND EXTRASOLAR PLANETS 195
CHAPTER 11 EARTH: THE ACTIVE PLANET 224
CHAPTER 12 THE MOON AND MERCURY: COMPARING AIRLESS WORLDS 243
CHAPTER 13 VENUS AND MARS 266
CHAPTER 14 JUPITER AND SATURN 296
CHAPTER 15 URANUS, NEPTUNE, AND THE KUIPER BELT 328
CHAPTER 16 METEORITES, ASTEROIDS, AND COMETS 353
Part 4: Life
CHAPTER 17 ASTROBIOLOGY: LIFE ON OTHER WORLDS 383
iv
Contents
Part 1: Exploring the Sky
How Do We Know?
Chapter 1 | Here and Now 1
1-1 WHERE ARE YOU? 2 1-1 The Scientific Method 8
1-2 WHEN IS NOW? 6 2-1 Scientific Models 20
1-3 WHY STUDY ASTRONOMY? 7
2-2 Pseudoscience 26
2-3 Evidence as the Foundation of Science 28
Chapter 2 | A User’s Guide to the Sky 11
2-1 STARS AND CONSTELLATIONS 12 2-4 Scientific Arguments 29
2-2 THE SKY AND CELESTIAL MOTIONS 17 3-1 Scientific Imagination 40
2-3 SUN AND PLANETS 21 4-1 Scientific Revolutions 64
2-4 ASTRONOMICAL INFLUENCES ON
EARTH’S CLIMATE 26 4-2 Hypotheses, Theories, and Laws 69
5-1 Cause and Effect 85
Chapter 3 | Moon Phases and Eclipses 33 5-2 Testing a Hypothesis by Prediction 94
3-1 THE CHANGEABLE MOON 34 6-1 Resolution and Precision 112
3-2 LUNAR ECLIPSES 34
3-3 SOLAR ECLIPSES 39
3-4 PREDICTING ECLIPSES 45
Chapter 4 | Origins of Modern Astronomy 52 Concept Art Portfolios

4-1 ROOTS OF ASTRONOMY 53
4-2 THE COPERNICAN REVOLUTION 59 The Sky Around You 18–19
4-3 TYCHO, KEPLER, AND PLANETARY MOTION 65 The Cycle of the Seasons 24–25
4-4 GALILEO FINDS CONCLUSIVE EVIDENCE 71
4-5 NINETY-NINE YEARS THAT REVOLUTIONIZED The Phases of the Moon 36–37
ASTRONOMY 75
An Ancient Model of the Universe 60–61
Chapter 5 | Gravity 79 Orbits 88–89

5-1 GALILEO’S AND NEWTON’S TWO NEW Modern Optical Telescopes 114–115
SCIENCES 80
5-2 ORBITAL MOTION AND TIDES 86
5-3 EINSTEIN AND RELATIVITY 95
Focus on Fundamentals 1 | Mass 84
Chapter 6 | Light and Telescopes 103 Focus on Fundamentals 2 | Energy 91
6-1 RADIATION: INFORMATION FROM SPACE 104
6-2 TELESCOPES 107
6-3 OBSERVATORIES ON EARTH: OPTICAL
AND RADIO 112
6-4 AIRBORNE AND SPACE OBSERVATORIES 119
6-5 ASTRONOMICAL INSTRUMENTS
AND TECHNIQUES 121
6-6 NON-ELECTROMAGNETIC ASTRONOMY 126
Part 2: The Stars
How Do We Know?
Chapter 7 | Atoms and Spectra 130
7-1 ATOMS 131 7-1 Quantum Mechanics 133
7-2 INTERACTIONS OF LIGHT AND MATTER 134 8-1 Confirmation and Consolidation 161
7-3 UNDERSTANDING SPECTRA 138 8-2 Scientific Confidence 170
9-1 Mathematical Models 180
Chapter 8 | The Sun 147
9-2 Science: A System of Knowledge 190
8-1 THE SOLAR PHOTOSPHERE AND ATMOSPHERE 148
8-2 SOLAR ACTIVITY 156 9-3 Theories and Proof 191
8-3 NUCLEAR FUSION IN THE SUN 166
Chapter 9 | Perspective: Origins 175

9-1 THE BIRTH OF STARS 176
9-2 THE DEATHS OF STARS 177
9-3 OUR HOME GALAXY 184
Concept Art Portfolios
9-4 THE UNIVERSE OF GALAXIES 185
Atomic Spectra 140–141
9-5 THE ORIGIN OF THE UNIVERSE 188
9-6 THE STORY OF MATTER 190 Sunspots and the Solar Magnetic Cycle 158–159
Solar Activity and the Sun–Earth Connection 162–163
Star Formation in the Orion Nebula 178–179
Formation of Planetary Nebulae and White Dwarfs 182–183
Galaxy Classification 186–187
Celestial Profile 1 | The Sun 148
Focus on Fundamentals 3 | Temperature, Heat, and Thermal

Energy 136
vi CONTENTS
Part 3: The Solar System
How Do We Know?
Chapter 10 | Origin of the Solar System and Extrasolar
Planets 195 10-1 Two Kinds of Hypotheses: Catastrophic and
Evolutionary 205
10-1 A SURVEY OF THE SOLAR SYSTEM 196
10-2 THE GREAT CHAIN OF ORIGINS 203 10-2 Scientists: Courteous Skeptics 217
10-3 BUILDING PLANETS 206 11-1 Understanding Planets: Follow the Energy 227
10-4 PLANETS ORBITING OTHER STARS 213 11-2 Studying an Unseen World 230
12-1 How Hypotheses and Theories Unify the Details 248
Chapter 11 | Earth: The Active Planet 224
13-1 Data Manipulation 270
11-1 A TRAVEL GUIDE TO THE TERRESTRIAL
PLANETS 225 14-1 Who Pays for Science? 323
11-2 EARTH AS A PLANET 226
15-1 Scientific Discoveries 330
11-3 THE SOLID EARTH 229
11-4 EARTH’S ATMOSPHERE 233 16-1 Selection Effects 356
Chapter 12 | The Moon and Mercury: Comparing

Airless Worlds 243
12-1 THE MOON 244 Concept Art Portfolios
12-2 MERCURY 257
Terrestrial and Jovian Planets 198–199
Chapter 13 | Venus and Mars 266
The Active Earth 234–235
13-1 VENUS 267
13-2 MARS 278 Impact Cratering 246–247
13-3 MARS’S MOONS 289
Volcanoes 272–273
Chapter 14 | Jupiter and Saturn 296 When Good Planets Go Bad 290–291
14-1 A TRAVEL GUIDE TO THE OUTER SOLAR SYSTEM 297 Jupiter’s Atmosphere 302–303
14-2 JUPITER 298
14-3 JUPITER’S MOONS AND RINGS 304 The Ice Rings of Saturn 320–321
14-4 SATURN 312
Uranus’s and Neptune’s Rings 338–339
14-5 SATURN’S MOONS AND RINGS 315
Observations of Asteroids 362–363
Chapter 15 | Uranus, Neptune, and the Kuiper Belt 328 Observations of Comets 368–369
15-1 URANUS 329
15-2 NEPTUNE 342
15-3 PLUTO AND THE KUIPER BELT 346
Chapter 16 | Meteorites, Asteroids, and Comets 353 Celestial Profile 2 | Earth 228
16-1 METEORITES, METEORS, AND METEOROIDS 354 Celestial Profile 3 | The Moon 256
16-2 ASTEROIDS 360 Celestial Profile 4 | Mercury 256
16-3 COMETS 367 Celestial Profile 5 | Venus 277
16-4 ASTEROID AND COMET IMPACTS 374 Celestial Profile 6 | Mars 277
Celestial Profile 7 | Jupiter 313
Celestial Profile 8 | Saturn 313
Celestial Profile 9 | Uranus 341
Celestial Profile 10 | Neptune 341
CONTENTS vii
Part 4: Life
How Do We Know?
Chapter 17 | Astrobiology: Life on Other Worlds 383
17-1 THE NATURE OF LIFE 384 17-1 The Nature of Scientific Explanation 385
17-2 LIFE IN THE UNIVERSE 388 17-2 UFOs and Space Aliens 397
17-3 INTELLIGENT LIFE IN THE UNIVERSE 396 17-3 The Copernican Principle 400
Concept Art Portfolios

DNA: The Code of Life 386–387
AFTERWORD A-1
APPENDIX A UNITS AND ASTRONOMICAL DATA A-3
APPENDIX B OBSERVING THE SKY A-11
GLOSSARY G-1
ANSWERS TO EVEN-NUMBERED PROBLEMS AN-1
INDEX I-1
viii CONTENTS
A Note to Students
From Dana and Mike
We are excited that you are taking an is the evidence, and how do we use it? memorize. Rather, this book is organized
astronomy course and using our book. For instance, how can anyone know there to show you how scientists use evidence
You are going to see and learn about was a big bang? In today’s world, you and theory to create logical arguments
some amazing things, from the icy rings need to think carefully about the things that explain how nature works. Look at
of Saturn to monster black holes. We are so-called experts say. You should demand the list of special features that follows
proud to be your guides as you explore. evidence, not just explanations. Scientists this note. Those features were carefully
We have developed this book to have a special way of knowing based on designed to help you understand astron-
help you expand your knowledge of evidence that makes scientific knowledge omy as evidence and theory. Once you
astronomy, from recognizing the moon much more powerful than just opinion, see science as logical arguments, you hold
and a few stars in the evening sky, to a policy, marketing, or public relations. It the key to the universe.
deeper understanding of the extent, is the human race’s best understanding of
power, and diversity of the universe. You nature. To comprehend the world around Don’t Be Humble
will meet worlds where it rains methane, you, you need to understand how science As teachers, our quest is simple. We
stars so dense their atoms are crushed, works. Throughout this book, you will want you to understand your place in
colliding galaxies that are ripping each find boxes called How Do We Know? They the universe—your location not just in
other apart, and a universe that is will help you understand how scientists space but in the unfolding history of the
expanding faster and faster. use the methods of science to know what physical universe. We want you not only
the universe is like. to know where you are and what you are
Two Goals in the universe but also to understand
This book is designed to help you answer Expect to Be Astonished how scientists know. By the end of this
two important questions: One reason astronomy is exciting is that book, we want you to know that the
astronomers discover new things every universe is very big but that it is de-
• What are we? day. Astronomers expect to be aston- scribed and governed by a small set of
• How do we know? ished. You can share in the excitement rules and that we humans have found a
By the question “What are we?” we because we have worked hard to include way to figure out the rules—a method
mean: How do we fit into the universe new images, new discoveries, and new called science.
and its history? The atoms you are made insights that will take you, in an intro- To appreciate your role in this
of had their first birthday in the big ductory course, to the frontier of human beautiful universe, you need to learn
bang when the universe began, but those knowledge. Huge telescopes on remote more than just the facts of astronomy.
atoms were cooked and remade inside mountaintops and in space provide a You have to understand what we are and
stars, and now they are inside you. daily dose of excitement that goes far how we know. Every page of this book
Where will they be in a billion years? beyond entertainment. These new dis- reflects that ideal.
Astronomy is the only course on campus coveries in astronomy are exciting
that can tell you that story, and it is a because they are about us. They tell us Dana Backman
story that everyone should know. more and more about what we are. dbackman@sofia.usra.edu
By the question “How do we know?” As you read this book, notice that it Mike Seeds
we mean: How does science work? What is not organized as lists of facts for you to mseeds@fandm.edu
A NOTE TO STUDENTS ix
Key Content and Pedagogical Changes • Doing Science boxes at the end of most chapter sections
begin with questions designed to put students into the role
for the Ninth Edition of scientists considering how best to proceed as they
investigate the cosmos. These questions serve a second
• Every chapter has been revised and updated with new text purpose as a further review of how we know what we know.
and images regarding observatories, the heliopause, star- Many of the Doing Science boxes end with a second
forming regions, supernova remnants, extrasolar planets, question that points the student-as-scientist in a direction
exploration of the surfaces of Mercury and Mars, large for investigation.
meteor impacts, asteroids and dwarf planets, comet nuclei, • Celestial Profiles of objects in our solar system directly
and extremophile habitats. compare and contrast planets with each other. This is the
• Some chapters have been reorganized and rewritten to better way planetary scientists understand the planets, not as
present their topics, especially Chapter 10 (“Origin of the isolated, unrelated bodies but as siblings with noticeable
Solar System and Extrasolar Planets”) and Chapter 13 differences but many characteristics and a family history in
(“Venus and Mars”). common.
• Other chapters and sections with less substantial but still • End-of-chapter Review Questions are designed to help
significant revisions are Chapter 7 (“Atoms and Spectra”) students review and test their understanding of the
and Chapter 15, Section 1 (“Uranus”). material.
• The End-of-Chapter Review Questions, Discussion • End-of-chapter Discussion Questions go beyond the text and
Questions, quantitative Problems, and Learning-to-Look invite students to think critically and creatively about
questions have been substantially expanded, rewritten, and scientific questions.
revised. • End-of-chapter Problems promote quantitative understanding
• All numerical values in the text and tables were checked of the text contents.
and in some cases updated, figure credits were thoroughly
checked and in many cases revised, and the style for figure
wavelength labels was made uniform.
• The features known as Scientific Arguments in earlier Course Solutions That Fit Your
editions were rewritten and renamed Doing Science. Teaching Goals and Your Students’
Learning Needs
Special Features
MindTap Astronomy for Seeds/Backman, Foundations of
Astronomy, can easily be adapted for use with Seeds/Backman,
• What Are We? items are short summaries at the end of Stars and Galaxies. MindTap Astronomy is well beyond an
each chapter to help students see how they fit into the
eBook, a homework solution or digital supplement, a resource
cosmos.
center website, a course delivery platform or a Learning
• How Do We Know? items are short boxes that help students
Management System.
understand how science works. For example, the How Do
More than 70% of students surveyed said it was unlike any-
We Know? boxes discuss the difference between a hypothesis
thing they have seen before. MindTap is a new personal learning
and a theory, the use of statistical evidence, the construc-
experience that combines all your digital assets—readings, mul-
tion of scientific models, and so on.
timedia, activities, and assessments—into a singular learning
• Concept Art Portfolios cover topics that are strongly graphic
path to improve student outcomes.
and provide an opportunity for students to create their own
MindTap Astronomy also features:
understanding and share in the satisfaction that scientists
feel as they uncover the secrets of nature. Color and • CengageNOWTM is an integrated, online
numerical keys in the introduction to the portfolios guide learning system that gives students 24/7 access to Study
you to the main concepts. Tools and assignments. Working at their own pace, or
• Guideposts on the opening page of each chapter help within a schedule set up by their instructor, students can
students see the organization of the book. The Guidepost now do homework, read textbooks, take quizzes and
connects the chapter with the preceding and following exams, and track their grades in an easy-to-use, personal-
chapters and provides a short list of important questions as ized online environment that they manage to best suit
guides to the objectives of the chapter. their needs.
x A NOTE TO STUDENTS
Cognero Instructor Companion Site
Cengage Learning Testing Powered by Cognero is a flexible, Everything you need for your course in one place! This collection
online system that allows you to: of book-specific lecture and class tools is available online via
• author, edit, and manage test bank content from multiple www.cengage.com/login. Access and download PowerPoint pre-
Cengage Learning solutions sentations, images, instructor’s manual, videos, and more.
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Acknowledgments
Over the years, we have had the guidance of a great many people project of international cooperation between ESA and NASA.
who care about astronomy and teaching. We would like to thank The SIMBAD database, operated at CDS, Strasbourg, France,
all of the students and teachers who have contributed to this was also used in preparation of this text.
book. They helped shape the book through their comments and It has been a great pleasure to work with our Cengage
suggestions. production team, Margaret Pinette, Victor Luu, Cate Barr,
Many observatories, research institutes, laboratories, and Alison Eigel Zade, and Aileen Berg, plus Michelle Dellinger of
individual astronomers have supplied figures and diagrams for Integra and Sofia Priya Dharshini of PreMediaGlobal. Special
this edition. They are listed on the credits page, and we would thanks for help with this edition go to Professor Michele
like to thank them specifically for their generosity. Montgomery of the University of Central Florida, who did a
We are happy to acknowledge the use of images and data large fraction of the work needed to overhaul completely the
from a number of important programs. In preparing materials end-of-chapter review questions and quantitative problems, and
for this book we used NASA’s Sky View facility located at NASA to Professor Gene Byrd of the University of Alabama, who
Goddard Space Flight Center. We have used atlas images and worked effectively to review the book’s page proofs.
mosaics obtained as part of the Two Micron All Sky Survey Most of all, we would like to thank our families for putting
(2MASS), a joint project of the University of Massachusetts and up with “the books.” They know all too well that textbooks are
the Infrared Processing and Analysis Center/California Institute made of time.
of Technology, funded by the National Aeronautics and Space Dana Backman
Administration and the National Science Foundation. A number Mike Seeds
of solar images are used courtesy of the SOHO consortium, a
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS xi
About the Authors
Dana Backman taught in the physics and astronomy department at Franklin
and Marshall College in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, from 1991 until 2003.
He invented and taught a course titled “Life in the Universe” in F&M’s
interdisciplinary Foundations program. Dana now teaches introductory solar
system astronomy at Santa Clara University and introductory astronomy,
astrobiology, and cosmology courses in Stanford University’s Continuing
Studies Program. His research interests focus on infrared observations of
planet formation, models of debris disks around nearby stars, and evolution
of the solar system’s Kuiper belt. Dana is employed by the SETI Institute in
Courtesy of March Dubroff
Mountain View, California, as director of education and public outreach for

SOFIA (the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy) at NASA’s
Ames Research Center. Dana is coauthor with Mike Seeds of Horizons:
Exploring the Universe, 12th edition (2012); Universe: Solar Systems, Stars,
and Galaxies, 7th edition (2012); Stars and Galaxies, 8th edition (2013);
The Solar System, 8th edition (2013); and ASTRO, 2nd edition (2013), all
published by Cengage.
Mike Seeds has been a professor of physics and astronomy at Franklin

and Marshall College in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, from 1970 until his
retirement in 2001. In 1989 he received F&M College’s Lindback Award for
Distinguished Teaching. Mike’s love for the history of astronomy led him to
create upper-level courses on archaeoastronomy and on the Copernican
Revolution (“Changing Concepts of the Universe”). His research interests
focus on variable stars and automation of astronomical telescopes. Mike
is coauthor with Dana Backman of Horizons: Exploring the Universe,
12th edition (2012); Universe: Solar Systems, Stars, and Galaxies,
7th edition (2012); Stars and Galaxies, 8th edition (2013); The Solar
System, 8th edition (2013); and ASTRO, 2nd edition (2013), all published
by Cengage. He was senior consultant for creation of the 20-episode
telecourse accompanying his book Horizons: Exploring the Universe.
Courtesy of Kris Koenig
xii ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Here and Now
1
Guidepost As you study astronomy, you will learn about This chapter is a jumping-off point for your exploration of
yourself. You are a planet-walker, and this chapter will give deep space and deep time. The next chapter continues your
you a preview of what that means. The planet you live on journey by looking at the night sky as seen from Earth. As
whirls around a star that moves through a Universe filled with you study astronomy, you will see how science gives you a
other stars and galaxies which are all results of billions of way to know how nature works. Later chapters will provide
years of history and evolution. You owe it to yourself to know more specific insights into how scientists study and under-
where you are in the Universe, and when you are in its stand nature.
history, because those are important steps toward knowing
what you are.
In this chapter, you will consider three important questions
about astronomy:
▶ Where is Earth in the Universe?
▶ How does human history fit into the history of the The longest journey begins with a single step.
Universe? —L AOZ I
▶ Why study astronomy?
NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center/GOES
Visual
Visual-wavelength image {AA} of Earth from the GOES (Geostationary

Operational Environment Satellite) East weather satellite stationed over
the central Atlantic Ocean. This image, which was made during the
month of January, shows a coating of snow over Canada and the
northern part of the United States, as well as lush vegetation in the
Amazon Basin of South America.
1-1 Where Are You?
To find your place among the stars, you can take a cosmic
zoom—a ride out through the Universe to preview the kinds of
objects you are about to study.
Begin with something familiar. Figure 1-1 shows an area about
50 feet across on a college campus including a person, a sidewalk,
and a few trees, which are all objects with sizes you can understand.
Each successive picture in this “zoom” will show you a region of the
Universe that is 100 times wider than the preceding picture. That
is, each step will widen your field of view, which is the region you
can see in the image, by a factor of 100.
Widening your field of view by a factor of 100 allows you
to see an area 1 mile in diameter in the next image (Figure 1-2).
People, trees, and sidewalks have become too small to discern,
but now you can view an entire college campus plus surround-
ing streets and houses. The dimensions of houses and streets are
familiar; this is still the world you know.
USGS
Before leaving this familiar territory, you need to change the
units you use to measure sizes. All scientists, including astronomers,
use the metric system of units because it is well understood world-
▲ Figure 1-2 This box ■ represents the relative size of the previous figure.
wide and, more important, because it simplifies calculations. If you
are not already familiar with the metric system, or if you need a at the lower right. At this scale, you can see some of the natural
review, study Appendix A (pages A-3–A-10) before reading on. features of Earth’s surface. The Allegheny Mountains of south-
In metric units, the image in Figure 1-1 is about 16 meters ern Pennsylvania cross the image at the upper left, and the
across, and the 1-mile diameter of Figure 1-2 equals about Susquehanna River flows southeast into Chesapeake Bay. What
1.6 kilometers. You can see that a kilometer (abbreviated km) is look like white bumps are a few puffs of cloud.
a bit less than two-thirds of a mile—a short walk across a neigh- Figure 1-3 is an infrared photograph in which healthy green
borhood. When you expand your field of view by another factor leaves and crops are shown as red. Human eyes are sensitive to
of 100, the neighborhood you saw in Figure 1-2 vanishes. Now only a narrow range of colors. As you explore the Universe, you
your field of view is 160 km wide, and you see cities and towns will learn to use a wide range of other “colors,” from X-rays to
as patches of gray (Figure 1-3). Wilmington, Delaware, is visible radio waves, to reveal sights invisible to unaided human eyes.
NASA/Landsat
Michael A. Seeds
Infrared
▲ Figure 1-3 This box ■ represents the relative size of the

▲ Figure 1-1 previous figure.
2 PART 1 EXPLORING THE SKY
Earth Moon
© 2016 Cengage Learning ®; images: NASA

Enlarged to show
relative sizes
Visual
NASA
Earth Moon
▲ Figure 1-4 This box ■ represents the relative size of the ▲ Figure 1-5 This box ■ represents the relative size of the
previous figure. previous figure.
You will learn much more about infrared, X-ray, and radio When you once again enlarge your field of view by a factor
energy in later chapters. of 100 (Figure 1-6), Earth, the Moon, and the Moon’s orbit that
At the next step in your journey, you can see your entire filled the previous figure all lie in the small red box at lower left
planet, which is nearly 13,000 km in diameter (Figure 1-4). At of the new figure. Now you can see the Sun and two other plan-
any particular moment, half of Earth’s surface is exposed to ets that are part of our Solar System. Our Solar System consists
sunlight, and the other half is in darkness. As Earth rotates on of the Sun, its family of planets, and some smaller bodies such
its axis, it carries you through sunlight and then through dark- as moons, asteroids, and comets.
ness, producing the cycle of day and night. The blurriness at the Earth, Venus, and Mercury are planets, which are spheri-
right edge of the Earth image is the boundary between day and cal, nonluminous bodies that orbit a star and shine by reflected
night—the sunset line. This is a good example of how a photo light. Venus is about the size of Earth, and Mercury has slightly
can give you visual clues to understanding a concept. Special
questions called “Learning to Look” at the end of each chapter
give you a chance to use your own imagination to connect
images with explanations about astronomical objects.
Enlarge your field of view by another factor of 100, and you Sun
Venus
see a region 1,600,000 km wide (Figure 1-5). Earth is the small
blue dot in the center, and the Moon, the diameter of which is
only one-fourth of Earth’s, is an even smaller dot along its orbit
380,000 km away. (The relative sizes of Earth and Moon are
© 2016 Cengage Learning ®; image: NOAO/AURA/NSF
shown in the inset at the bottom right of Figure 1-5.) AU

1
The numbers in the preceding paragraph are so large that it
Mercury
is inconvenient to write them out. Soon you will be using num-
bers even larger than these to describe the Universe; rather than
Enlarged to show
writing such astronomical numbers as they are in the previous relative sizes
paragraph, it is more convenient to write them in scientific
notation. This is nothing more than a simple way to write very Earth
big or very small numbers without using lots of zeros. For exam- Earth
ple, in scientific notation 380,000 becomes 3.8 3 105. If you are Sun
not familiar with scientific notation, read the section on “Powers
of 10 Notation” in Appendix A (pages A-4–A-5). The Universe ▲ Figure 1-6 The small red box around Earth at lower left
is too big to describe without using scientific notation. contains the entire field of view of Figure 1-5.
Chapter 1 HERE AND NOW 3
more than one-third of Earth’s diameter. On this diagram, they
are both too small to be portrayed as anything but tiny dots.
The Sun is a star, a self-luminous ball of hot gas. Even though
the Sun is about 100 times larger in diameter than Earth (inset
at bottom right of Figure 1-6), it, too, is no more than a dot in
this diagram. Figure 1-6 represents an area with a diameter of
1.6 3 108 km.
Sun and planets
Another way astronomers simplify descriptions and calcula-
tions that require large numbers is to define larger units of
© 2016 Cengage Learning ®

measurement. For example, the average distance from Earth to
the Sun is a unit of distance called the astronomical unit (AU);
an AU is equal to 1.5 3 108 km. Using that term, you can express
the average distance from Mercury to the Sun as about 0.39 AU
and the average distance from Venus to the Sun as about 0.72 AU.
These distances are averages because the orbits of the plan-
ets are not perfect circles. This is especially apparent in the case ▲ Figure 1-8 The small red box at the center contains
of Mercury. Its orbit carries it as close to the Sun as 0.31 AU and the entire field of view of Figure 1-7.
as far away as 0.47 AU. You can see the variation in the distance
from Mercury to the Sun in Figure 1-6. Earth’s orbit is more warmth. Light from the Sun reaches Earth in only 8 minutes,
circular than Mercury’s; its distance from the Sun varies by only but it takes more than 4 hours to reach Neptune.
a few percent. You can remember the order of the planets from the Sun
Enlarge your field of view again by a factor of 100, and you outward by remembering a simple sentence such as: My Very
can see the entire planetary region of our Solar System (Figure 1-7). Educated Mother Just Served Us Noodles (perhaps you can come
The Sun, Mercury, Venus, and Earth lie so closely together that up with a better one). The first letter of each word is the same as
you cannot see them separately at this scale, and they are lost in the first letter of a planet’s name: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars,
the red square at the center of this diagram that shows the size of Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. The list of planets once
the previous figure. You can see only the brighter, more widely included Pluto, but in 2006, astronomers attending an interna-
separated objects such as Mars, the next planet outward. Mars is tional scientific congress made the decision that Pluto should be
only 1.5 AU from the Sun, but Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and redefined as a dwarf planet. Although Pluto meets some of the
Neptune are farther from the Sun, and so they are easier to locate criteria to be considered a planet, it is small and not alone in its
in this diagram. They are cold worlds that are far from the Sun’s orbit; Pluto is one of a group of small objects that have been
discovered circling the Sun beyond Neptune.
When you again enlarge your field of view by a factor of
100, the Solar System vanishes (Figure 1-8). The Sun is only a
point of light, and all the planets and their orbits are now
crowded into the small red square at the center. The planets are
too small and too faint to be visible so near the brilliance of
the Sun.
Notice that no stars are visible in Figure 1-8 except for the
Sun Sun. The Sun is a fairly typical star, and it seems to be located
Mars
in a fairly average neighborhood in the Universe. Although there
Jupiter
are many billions of stars like the Sun, none is close enough to
Saturn
be visible in this diagram, which shows a region only 11,000 AU
in diameter. Stars in the Sun’s neighborhood are typically sepa-
Uranus
rated by distances about 30 times larger than that.

Neptune In Figure 1-9, your field of view has expanded again by a
factor of 100 to a diameter of 1.1 million AU. The Sun is at
the center, and at this scale you can see a few of the nearest
stars. These stars are so distant that it is not convenient to give
their distances in AU. To express distances so large, astrono-
▲ Figure 1-7 The small red box around the Sun at center mers defined a new unit of distance, the light-year. One
contains the entire field of view of Figure 1-6. light-year (ly) is the distance that light travels in one year,
Sun
NOAO/AURA/NSF
Visual
▲ Figure 1-9 This box ■ represents the relative size of the ▲ Figure 1-10 This box ■ represents the relative size of the
previous figure. previous figure.
approximately 9.5 3 1012 km or 63,000 AU. It is a Common thousands of light-years from Earth to look back and photograph
Misconception that a light-year is a unit of time, and you can our neighborhood, so this is a representative photograph of the
sometimes hear the term misused in science fiction movies and sky. The Sun is a relatively faint star that would not be easily
TV shows. The next time you hear someone say, “It will take located in a photo at this scale.
me light-years to finish my history paper,” you could tell the If you again expand your field of view by a factor of 100, you
person that a light-year is a distance, not a time (although see our galaxy, with a visible disk of stars about 80,000 ly in
perhaps that comment wouldn’t be appreciated). The diameter diameter (Figure 1-11). A galaxy is a great cloud of stars, gas, and
of your field of view in Figure 1-9 is 17 ly. dust held together by the combined gravity of all of its matter.
Another Common Misconception is that stars look like disks Galaxies range from 1000 ly to more than 300,000 ly in diame-
when seen through a telescope. Although most stars are approxi- ter, and the biggest ones contain more than a trillion (1012) stars.
mately the same size as the Sun, they are so far away that In the night sky, you can see our galaxy as a great, cloudy wheel
astronomers cannot see them as anything but points of light.
Even the closest star to the Sun—Proxima Centauri, which is
only 4.2 ly from Earth—looks like a point of light through the
biggest telescopes on Earth. Figure 1-9 follows the common
astronomical practice of making the sizes of the dots represent
not the sizes of the stars but their brightness. This is how star
images are recorded on photographs. Bright stars make larger
spots on a photograph than faint stars, so the size of a star image
© 2016 Cengage Learning ®; Mark Garlick/space-art.co.uk
in a photo tells you not how big the star is but rather how bright
it is.
You might wonder whether other stars have families of
planets orbiting around them as the Sun does. Such objects,
termed extrasolar planets, are very difficult to see because they
are generally small, faint, and too close to the glare of their
Location of Sun
respective parent stars. Nevertheless, astronomers have used • and planets
indirect methods to find more than a thousand such objects,
although only a handful have been photographed directly.
Artist’s conception
In Figure 1-10, you expand your field of view by another fac-
tor of 100, and the Sun and its neighboring stars vanish into the
background of thousands of other stars. The field of view is now ▲ Figure 1-11 This box ■ represents the relative size of
1700 ly in diameter. Of course, no one has ever journeyed the previous figure.
of stars ringing the sky. This band of stars is known as the Milky
Way, and our home galaxy is called the Milky Way Galaxy.
How does anyone know what the disk of the Milky Way
Galaxy would look like from a vantage point tens of thousands
Based on data from M. Seldner et al. 1977, Astronomical Journal 82, 249.
of light years away? Astronomers use evidence to guide their
explanations as they envision what our galaxy looks like. Artists
can then use those scientific descriptions to create a painting.
Many images in this book are artists’ conceptions of objects and
events that are too big or too dim to see clearly, emit energy your
eyes cannot detect, or happen too slowly or too rapidly for
humans to sense. These images are much better than guesses;
they are scientifically based illustrations guided by the best
information astronomers can gather. As you continue to explore,
notice how astronomers use the methods of science to imagine,
understand, and depict cosmic events.
The artist’s conception of the Milky Way Galaxy repro-
duced in Figure 1-11 shows that our galaxy, like many others,
has graceful spiral arms winding outward through its disk. In ▲ Figure 1-13 This box ■ represents the relative size of
a later chapter, you will learn that the spiral arms are places the previous figure.
where stars are formed from clouds of gas and dust. Our own
Sun was born in one of these spiral arms, and, if you could see
represents a galaxy. Notice that our galaxy is part of a group of a
the Sun in this picture, it would be in the disk of the Galaxy
few dozen galaxies. Galaxies are commonly grouped together in
about two-thirds of the way out from the center, at about the
such clusters. Some galaxies have beautiful spiral patterns like our
location of the marker dot indicated in the figure.
home, the Milky Way Galaxy, some are globes of stars without
Ours is a fairly large galaxy. Only a century ago astrono-
spirals, and some seem strangely distorted. In a later chapter, you
mers thought it was the entire Universe—an island cloud of
will learn what produces these differences among the galaxies.
stars in an otherwise empty vastness. Now they know that the
Now is a chance for you to spot another Common Misconception.
Milky Way Galaxy is not unique; it is only one of many billions
People often say Galaxy when they mean Solar System, and they
of galaxies scattered throughout the Universe.
sometimes confuse both terms with Universe. Your cosmic zoom
You can see a few of these other galaxies when you expand
has shown you the difference. The Solar System is your local
your field of view by another factor of 100 (Figure 1-12). Our gal-
neighborhood, that is, the Sun and its planets, one planetary
axy appears as a tiny luminous speck surrounded by other specks
system. The Milky Way Galaxy contains our Solar System plus
in a region 17 million light-years in diameter. Each speck
billions of other stars and whatever planets orbit around them—
in other words, billions of planetary systems. The Universe
includes everything: all of the galaxies, stars, and planets, includ-
ing the Galaxy and, a very small part of that, our Solar System.
If you expand your field of view one more time, you can see
that clusters of galaxies are connected in a vast network (Figure 1-13).
Clusters are grouped into superclusters—clusters of clusters—and
the superclusters are linked to form long filaments and walls outlin-
ing nearly empty voids. These filaments and walls appear to be the
Milky Way Galaxy
largest structures in the Universe. Were you to expand your field of
view another time, you would probably see a uniform fog of fila-
ments and walls. When you puzzle over the origin of these struc-
tures, you are at the frontier of human knowledge.
1-2 When Is Now?

Now that you have an idea where you are in space, you might
▲ Figure 1-12 This box ■ represents the relative size of also like to know where you are in time. The stars shone for bil-
the previous figure. lions of years before the first human looked up and wondered
what they were. To get a sense of your place in time, all you need of the Universe. As you will discover in the chapters that follow,
is a long ribbon. only in the last hundred years or so have astronomers begun to
Imagine stretching that ribbon from goal line to goal line understand where we are in space and in time.
down the center of a U.S. football field, a distance of 100 yards
(about 91 meters), as shown on the inside front cover of this book.
Imagine that one end of the ribbon represents today, and the 1-3 Why Study Astronomy?
other end represents the beginning of the Universe—the moment
that astronomers call the big bang. Your ribbon represents 14 bil- Your exploration of the Universe will help you answer two fun-
lion years, the entire history of the Universe. damental questions:
Imagine beginning at the goal line labeled BIG BANG and
What are we?
replaying the entire history of the Universe as you walk along
How do we know?
your ribbon toward the goal line labeled TODAY. Astronomers
have evidence that the big bang initially filled the entire The question “What are we?” is the first organizing theme
Universe with hot, glowing gas, but, as the gas cooled and of this book. Astronomy is important to you because it will tell
dimmed, the Universe went dark. That all happened along the you what you are. Notice that the question is not “Who are we?”
first half-inch of the ribbon. There was no light for the next 400 If you want to know who we are, you may want to talk to a
million years, until gravity was able to pull some of the gas paleontologist, sociologist, theologian, artist, or poet. “What are
together to form the first stars. That seems like a lot of years, but we?” is a fundamentally different question.
if you stick a little flag beside the ribbon to mark the birth of the As you study astronomy, you will learn how you fit into the
first stars, it would be not quite 3 yards from the goal line where history of the Universe. You will learn that the atoms in your
the Universe’s history began. body had their birth in the big bang when the Universe began.
You have to walk only about 4 or 5 yards along the ribbon Those atoms have been cooked and remade inside generations of
before galaxies formed in large numbers. Our home galaxy stars, and now, after more than 10 billion years, they are inside
would be one of those taking shape. By the time you cross the you. Where will they be in another 10 billion years? This is a
50-yard line, the Universe is full of galaxies, but the Sun and story everyone should know, and astronomy is the only course
Earth have not formed yet. You need to walk past the 50-yard on campus that can tell you that story.
line all the way to the other 33-yard line before you can finally Every chapter in this book ends with a short segment titled
stick a flag beside the ribbon to mark the formation of the Sun “What Are We?” This summary shows how the astronomy in
and planets—our Solar System— 4.6 billion years ago and the chapter relates to your part in the story of the Universe.
about 9 billion years after the big bang. The question “How do we know?” is the second organiz-
You can carry your flags a few yards further to about the ing theme of this book. It is a question you should ask your-
25-yard line, 3.4 billion years ago, to mark the earliest firm self whenever you encounter statements made by so-called
evidence for life on Earth—microscopic creatures in the experts in any field. Should you swallow a diet supplement
oceans—and you have to walk all the way to the 3-yard line recommended by a TV star? Should you vote for a candidate
before you can mark the emergence of life on land only 0.4 bil- who warns of a climate crisis? To understand the world
lion (400 million) years ago. Your dinosaur flag goes inside the around you and to make wise decisions for yourself, for your
2-yard line. Dinosaurs go extinct as you pass the one-half-yard family, and for your nation, you need to understand how sci-
line, 65 million years ago. ence works.
What about people? You can put a little flag for the first You can use astronomy as a case study in science. In every
humanlike creatures, 4 million years ago, only about 1 inch chapter of this book, you will find short essays titled “How Do
(2.5 cm) from the goal line labeled TODAY. Civilization, the We Know?” They are designed to help you think not about what
building of cities, began about 10,000 years ago, so you have is known but about how it is known. To do that, these essays will
to try to fit that flag in only 0.0026 inches from the goal line. explain different aspects of scientific thought processes and pro-
That’s less than the thickness of the page you are reading cedures to help you understand how scientists learn about the
right now. Compare the history of human civilization with natural world.
the history of the Universe. Every war you have ever heard of, Over the last four centuries, a way to understand nature has
the life of every person whose name is recorded, and the con- been developed that is called the scientific method (How Do We
struction of every structure ever made from Stonehenge to the Know? 1-1). You will see this process applied over and over as you
building you are in right now fits into that 0.0026 inches of read about exploding stars, colliding galaxies, and alien planets.
the time ribbon. The Universe is very big, but it is described by a small set of
Humanity is very new to the Universe. Our civilization on rules, and we humans have found a way to figure out the rules
Earth has existed for only a flicker of an eyeblink in the history by using a method called science.
How Do We Know? 1-1
The Scientific Method
How do scientists learn about nature? You For example, Gregor Mendel (1822– a new idea, other times spending years
have probably heard several times during 1884) was an Austrian abbot who liked studying a single promising hypothesis.
your education about the scientific method plants. He formed a hypothesis that The scientific method is, in fact, a
as the process by which scientists form offspring usually inherit traits from their combination of many ways of analyzing
hypotheses and test them against evidence parents not as a smooth blend, as most information, finding relationships, and
gathered by experiments and observations. scientists of the time believed, but in creating new ideas, in order to know and
That is an oversimplification of the subtle discrete units according to strict mathemati- understand nature. The “How Do We Know?”
and complex ways that scientists actually cal rules. Mendel cultivated and tested more essays in the chapters that follow will
work. Scientists use the scientific method all than 28,000 pea plants, noting which introduce you to some of those techniques.
the time, and it is critically important, but produced smooth peas and which produced
they rarely think of it while they are doing it, wrinkled peas and how that trait was
any more than you think about the details of inherited by successive generations. His
what you are doing while you are riding a study of pea plants confirmed his hypothesis
bicycle. It is such an ingrained way of and allowed the development of a series of
thinking about and understanding nature laws of inheritance. Although the importance
that it is almost transparent to the people of his work was not recognized in his
who use it most. lifetime, Mendel is now called the “father of
Scientists try to form hypotheses that modern genetics.”
Inspirestock/Jupiter Images
explain how nature works. If a hypothesis is The scientific method is not a simple,
contradicted by evidence from experiments mechanical way of grinding facts into
or observations, it must be revised or understanding; a scientist needs insight and
discarded. If a hypothesis is confirmed, it still ingenuity both to form and to test good
must be tested further. In that very general hypotheses. Scientists use the scientific
way, the scientific method is a way of testing method almost automatically, sometimes
and refining ideas to better describe how forming, testing, revising, and discarding Whether peas are wrinkled or smooth is an inherited
nature works. hypotheses minute by minute as they discuss trait.
What Are We? Par ticipants

Astronomy will give you perspective on what it means to be here Not only does astronomy locate you in space and time, it
on Earth. This chapter has helped you locate yourself in space places you within the physical processes that govern the
and time. Once you realize how vast our Universe is, Earth Universe. Gravity and atoms work together to make stars,
seems quite small. People on the other side of the world seem generate energy, light the Universe, and create the chemical
like neighbors. And, in the entire history of the Universe, the elements in your body. The chapters that follow will show how
story of humanity is only the blink of an eye. This may seem you fit into that cosmic process.
humbling at first, but you can be proud of how much we Although you are very small and your kind have existed in the
humans have understood in such a short time. Universe for only a short time, you are an important participant
in something very large and beautiful.
Study and Review
As you study astronomy, you should ask, “How do we know?” and
Summary ▶
that will help you understand how science provides a way to
▶ You surveyed the Universe by taking a cosmic zoom in which each understand nature.
field of view (p. 2) was 100 times wider than the previous field of ▶ In its simplest outline, science follows the scientific method
view. (p. 7), in which scientists test hypotheses against evidence from
▶ Astronomers use the metric system because it simplifies calcula- experiments and observations. This method is a powerful way to
tions, and they use scientific notation (p. 3) for very large or very learn about nature.
small numbers.
▶ You live on a planet (p. 3), Earth, which orbits our star (p. 4), the
Sun, once per year. As Earth rotates once per day, you see the
Review Questions
Sun rise and set. 1. The field of view in Figure 1-2 is a factor of 100 larger than the
▶ The Moon is approximately one-fourth the diameter of Earth, field of view in Figure 1-1. What aspects of Figure 1-2 increased
whereas the Sun is about 100 times larger in diameter than by a factor of 100 relative to Figure 1-1? Did the height increase
Earth—a typical size for a star. by that amount? The diameter? The area?
▶ The Solar System (p. 3) includes the Sun at the center, all of the 2. What is the largest dimension of which you have personal
major planets that orbit around it—Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, sensory experience? Have you ever hiked 10 miles? Run a
Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune—plus the moons of the marathon? Driven across a continent? Flown to the opposite side
planets and other objects such as asteroids, comets, and dwarf of Earth?
planets (p. 4) like Pluto, bound to the Sun by its gravity. 3. What is the difference between the Solar System, the Galaxy, and
the Universe?
▶ The astronomical unit (AU) (p. 4) is the average distance from
Earth to the Sun. Mars, for example, orbits about 1.5 AU from the 4. What is the difference between the Moon and a moon?
Sun. The light-year (ly) (p. 4) is the distance light can travel in 5. Why do astronomers now label Pluto a “dwarf planet”?
one year. The nearest star is 4.2 ly from the Sun. 6. Why are light-years more convenient than miles, kilometers, or AU
▶ Astronomers have found more than a thousand extrasolar planets for measuring certain distances?
(p. 5) orbiting stars other than our Sun, even though such distant and 7. Why is it difficult to detect extrasolar planets, that is, planets
small bodies are very difficult to detect. So far only a few extrasolar orbiting other stars?
planets are known to be Earth-like in size and temperature. 8. What does the size of the star image in a photograph tell you?
▶ The Milky Way (p. 6), the hazy band of light that encircles the sky, 9. What is the difference between the Milky Way and the Milky Way
is the Milky Way Galaxy (p. 6) seen from inside. The Sun is just Galaxy?
one out of the billions of stars that fill the Milky Way Galaxy. 10. When looking at the Milky Way in the night sky, are you seeing
▶ Galaxies (p. 5) contain many billions of stars. The Milky Way spiral arms of the Milky Way Galaxy? How do you know?
Galaxy is about 80,000 ly in diameter and contains more than 11. What are the largest known structures in the Universe?
100 billion stars.
12. Where are you in the Universe? If you had to give directions
▶ Some galaxies, including our own, have graceful spiral arms (p. 6) to your location in the Universe, what directions would you
that are bright with stars. Many other galaxies are plain globes of give?
stars without spiral arms, and a few galaxies have irregular shapes. 13. What percentage is your life span compared to the age of the
▶ Our galaxy is just one of billions of galaxies that fill the Universe Solar System? Compared to the age of the Universe?
in great clusters, clouds, filaments, and walls—the largest 14. Why should you study astronomy? Do you anticipate needing to
structures in the Universe. know astronomy 5 or 10 years from now? If so, where?
▶ Astronomers have evidence that the Universe began about 15. How does astronomy help answer the question, “What are we?”
14 billion years ago in an event called the big bang, which filled 16. How do we know? How does the scientific method give scientists a
the Universe with hot gas. way to know about nature?
▶ The hot gas cooled, the first galaxies began to form, and stars
began to shine about 400 million years after the big bang.
▶ The Sun and planets of our Solar System formed about 4.6 billion Discussion Questions
years ago. 1. Do you think you have a responsibility to know the contents of
▶ Life began in Earth’s oceans soon after Earth formed but did not this chapter? Are there ways this knowledge helps you enjoy a
emerge onto land until 400 million years ago, less than 1/30 of richer life and be a better citizen?
the age of the Universe. Dinosaurs evolved relatively soon after 2. How is a statement in a political campaign speech different
that and went extinct just 65 million years ago. from a statement in a scientific discussion? Find examples in
▶ Humanlike creatures developed on Earth only about 4 million newspapers, magazines, and this book.
years ago, less than 1/3000 of the age of the Universe, and 3. If dwarf means small, meaning dwarf planets are smaller
human civilizations developed just 10,000 years ago. than planets, should dwarf planets be considered planets, or
▶ Although astronomy seems to be about stars and planets, it not?
describes the Universe in which you live, so it is really about you. 4. Is Earth an extrasolar planet to a planet that is orbiting around a
Astronomy helps you answer the question, “What are we?” star other than the Sun?
Problems Learning to Look
(Give your answers in scientific notation when appropriate.) 1. Look at the center of Figure 1-4. Approximately what time of day
1. The equatorial diameter of Earth is 7928 miles. If a mile equals is it at that location? Sunrise? Sunset? Noontime? Midnight? How
1.609 km, what is Earth’s diameter in kilometers? In do you know?
centimeters? 2. Look at Figure 1-6. How can you tell that Mercury does not follow
2. The equatorial diameter of the Moon is 3476 kilometers. If a a circular orbit?
kilometer equals 0.6214 miles, what is the Moon’s diameter in 3. Look at Figure 1-9. How many stars are within 5 ly of the Sun?
miles? Would that number be about the same or much different, if Earth
3. One astronomical unit (AU) is about 1.5 3 108 km. Explain why orbited a different star than the Sun?
this is the same as 150 3 106 km. 4. Look at Figure 1-12. Would you call the distribution of galaxies
4. A typical galaxy is shown on the first page of the Universe Bowl around the Milky Way Galaxy uniform? How do you know?
on the inside cover of this textbook. Express the number of stars 5. Of the objects listed here,
in this typical galaxy in scientific notation. which would be contained
5. The time of the Cambrian explosion is listed on the second page inside the object shown in
of the Universe Bowl on the inside cover of this textbook. Express the photograph at the right?
that time in scientific notation. Which would contain the
6. Venus orbits 0.72 AU from the Sun. What is that distance in object in the photo?
kilometers? (Hint: See Problem 3.) star
7. Light from the Sun takes 8 minutes to reach Earth. How long planet
does it take to reach Mars? galaxy cluster
Bill Schoening/NOAO/AURA/NSF
8. The Sun is almost 400 times farther from Earth than is the supercluster filament
Moon. How long does light from the Moon take to reach Earth?
spiral arm
9. If the speed of light is 3.0 3 105 km/s, how many kilometers are
in a light-year? How many meters? (Hint: How many seconds are
in a year?)
10. Light from the star Betelgeuse takes 640 years to reach Earth.
How far away is Betelgeuse in units of light-years? Name any
historical event that was occurring on Earth at about the time the
light left Betelgeuse. Is the distance to Betelgeuse unusual
compared with other stars? 6. In the photograph shown here,
which stars are brightest, and
11. How long does it take light to cross the diameter of the Milky Way which are faintest? How can
Galaxy? you tell? Why can’t you tell
12. The nearest galaxy to our home Galaxy is about 2.5 million which stars in this photograph
light-years away. How many meters is that? are biggest or which have
13. How many galaxies like our own would it take if they were placed extrasolar planets?
edge-to-edge to reach the nearest galaxy? (Hint: See Problems 11
and 12.)
NOAO
A User’s Guide to the Sky
2
Guidepost The previous chapter took you on a cosmic center of the Universe. Remind yourself that Earth is really a
zoom through space and time. That quick preview prepared planet spinning on an axis and moving in an orbit. The next
you for the journey to come. In this chapter you can begin chapter will introduce you to other impressive sky phenom-
your exploration by viewing the sky from Earth; as you do, ena: phases of the Moon and eclipses.
consider five important questions:
▶ How are stars and constellations named?
▶ How are the brightnesses of stars measured and

compared?
The Southern Cross I saw every night abeam.
▶ How does the sky appear to change and move in The sun every morning came up astern; every
daily and annual cycles? evening it went down ahead. I wished for no
▶ What causes seasons?
other compass to guide me, for these were true.
▶ How do astronomical cycles affect Earth’s climate?
C A P TA I N J O S H U A S L O C U M
As you read about the sky and its motions, notice that SA IL ING ALONE AROUND THE WORLD
the words often seem to imply that Earth is stationary at the
Babek Tafreshi/SSPL/Getty Images
A long-exposure photograph of the Milky Way, the planet Jupiter (bright

object at upper right), and the constellation Scorpius.
11
he night sky is the rest of the Universe as seen from Constellations
T Earth. When you look up at the stars, you are looking out
through a layer of air only about 100 kilometers (60 miles)
deep. Beyond that, space is nearly empty, with the planets of our
All around the world, native cultures celebrated heroes, gods,
and mythical beasts by giving their names to groups of stars—
constellations (Figure 2-1). You should not be surprised that the
Solar System several astronomical units away and the distant
star patterns generally do not look like the creatures they are
stars scattered many light-years apart.
named after any more than Columbus, Ohio, looks like
As you read this chapter, you will learn about how Earth’s
Christopher Columbus. The constellations named within
motions affect what you can see from your planet, a moving
Western culture originated in the civilizations of Assyria, Babylon,
platform:
Egypt, and Greece more than 3000 years ago.
▶ Because Earth rotates on its axis once a day, the sky Different cultures grouped stars and named constellations
appears to turn around you in a daily cycle. Not only differently. The constellation you call Orion was known in antiq-
does the Sun rise in the eastern part of the sky and set in uity as Al Jabbār (the Giant) to the Arabs, as the White Tiger to
the western part, but so do the stars and other celestial the Chinese, and as Prajapati (a deity in the form of a stag) in
objects. India. The Pawnee Indians saw the constellation Scorpius as two
▶ Because Earth revolves around the Sun once a year, groupings: The long tail of the scorpion was the Snake, and the
different stars are visible in the night sky in an bright stars at the tip of the scorpion’s tail were the Two Swimming
annual cycle. Ducks. In Hawai’i, the scorpion’s tail was Maui’s Fishhook that
▶ The sequence of seasons you experience is caused by a pulled the islands up from the bottom of the ocean.
combination of Earth’s yearly motion plus the tilt of On the other hand, many cultures, including the ancient
Earth’s axis relative to its orbit. Greeks, northern Asians, and Native Americans, all associated the
stars in and around the Big Dipper with the figure of a bear. The
concept of the celestial bear may have crossed the land bridge into
2-1 Stars and Constellations North America with the first Americans more than 12,000 years
ago. Hence, the names of some of the groups of stars you see in the
On a dark night far from city lights, you can see a few thousand sky may be among the oldest surviving traces of human culture.
stars. Long ago, humans tried to make sense of what they saw by Originally, constellations were simply loosely defined group-
naming stars and groups of stars. Some of those ancient names ing of bright stars. Many of the fainter stars were not included in
are still in use today. any constellation, and stars in the southern sky, not visible to
▲
Figure 2-1 The constellations are an ancient heritage

handed down for thousands of years as celebrations of
mythical heroes and monsters. Here, Sagittarius and
Scorpio appear above the southern horizon.
a
Boston: John B. Russell, 1837; Panel b: © 2016 Cengage Learning ®

Constellation boundaries were
only approximate prior to 1928.
Panel a: From Duncan Bradford, Wonders of the Heavens,
Andromeda
Alpheratz
Pegasus
▲ Figure 2-2 (a) In antiquity, constellation boundaries were

poorly defined, as shown on this map by the curving dotted lines
Great Square separating Pegasus from Andromeda. (b) Modern constellation
b of Pegasus boundaries are precisely defined by international agreement.
early astronomers observing from northern latitudes, were not includes three stars from Pegasus plus Alpheratz from Andromeda.
included on their star maps. Constellation boundaries, when You can introduce yourself to the brighter constellations and
they were defined at all, were only approximate (Figure 2-2a), so a asterisms using the star charts in Appendix B (pages A-11–A-13).
star like Alpheratz could be thought of as both part of Pegasus Although constellations and asterisms are groups of stars that
and part of Andromeda. To correct these gaps and ambiguities, appear close together in the sky, it is important to remember that
modern astronomers invented more constellations, and in 1928 most are made up of stars that are not physically associated with
the International Astronomical Union (IAU) established one another. Some stars may be many times farther away than
88 official constellations with carefully defined boundaries others and moving through space in different directions. The only
(Figure 2-2b) that together include every part of the sky. (The thing they have in common is that they happen to lie in approxi-
IAU is the same organization that redefined Pluto as a dwarf mately the same direction as seen from Earth (Figure 2-3).
planet in 2006, as mentioned in Chapter 1.) Consequently, a
constellation now represents not a group of stars, but a certain Star Names
area of the sky, such that any star within the area belongs to just In addition to naming groups of stars, early astronomers gave
that one constellation. Now, Alpheratz is only in Andromeda. individual names to the brightest stars. Modern astronomers
In addition to the 88 official constellations, the sky contains still use many of those ancient names. Although the constella-
a number of less formally defined groupings called asterisms. tion names came from Greek translated into Latin—the lan-
The Big Dipper, for example, is a well-known asterism that is guages of science until the 19th century—most individual star
part of the constellation Ursa Major (the Great Bear). Another names come from Arabic and have been altered through the
asterism is the Great Square of Pegasus (Figure 2-2b) that passing centuries. The name of Betelgeuse, the bright orange
Chapter 2 A USER’S GUIDE TO THE SKY 13
▲
Figure 2-3 You see the Big Dipper in the sky because you are looking
through a group of stars scattered through space at different distances
sky from Earth. You view them as if they were projected on a screen, and they
on the
p rojected form the shape of the Dipper.
rs
Sta
star in Orion, for example, comes from the Arabic yad al-jawza,
meaning “Hand of Jawza [Gemini and Orion].” Names such as
Sirius (Scorcher) and Aldebaran (the Follower [of the Pleiades])
are intriguing additions to the mythology of the sky.
Naming individual stars is not very helpful because you can
see thousands of them. How many names could you possibly
remember? Also, a simple name gives you little or no information
about the star itself. A more useful way to identify stars is to assign
letters to the bright stars in a constellation in approximate order of
brightness. Astronomers use the Greek alphabet for this purpose.
Nearest Farthest star Thus, the brightest star in a constellation is usually designated
star
Alpha, the second brightest Beta, and so on. Often the name of
Actual distribution the Greek letter is spelled out, as in “Alpha,” but sometimes the
of stars in space actual Greek letter is used, especially in charts. You can find the
Greek alphabet in Appendix A (page A-9). For many constella-
Earth tions, the letters follow the order of brightness, but some constel-
lations—by tradition, mistake, or the personal preferences of early
chart makers—are exceptions, for example, Orion (Figure 2-4).
To identify a star by its Greek-letter designation, you would
give the Greek letter followed by the genitive (possessive) form
▲
Figure 2-4 The stars in Orion do
not quite follow the rule for assigning
Greek letters in order of decreasing
brightness. For example, ␤ (Beta) is
brighter than ␣ (Alpha), and ␬ (Kappa)
is brighter than ␩ (Eta). Fainter stars
λ do not have Greek letters or names,
but if they are located inside the con-
α
stellation boundaries, they are part of
the constellation. The brighter stars in
γ a constellation often also have indi-
α Orionis is vidual names derived from Arabic.
also known as (The spikes on the star images in the
Orion
Orion Betelgeuse. photograph were produced by an opti-
cal effect in the telescope.)
δ
ζ ε
η
ι
τ
κ β
β Orionis is also
known as Rigel.
William Hartmann
Visual
of the constellation name; for example, the brightest star in the Star Brightness
constellation Canis Major is Alpha Canis Majoris, which can Astronomers describe the brightness of stars using the magnitude
also be written as ␣ Canis Majoris. This name identifies the star scale, a system that first appeared in the writings of the astrono-
and the constellation and gives a clue to the star’s relative bright- mer Claudius Ptolemaeus (pronounced TAHL-eh-MAY-us)
ness. Compare this with the ancient “personal” name for this about the year 140. The magnitude system probably originated
star, Sirius, which tells you nothing about its location or even earlier; many historians attribute its invention to the Greek
brightness. astronomer Hipparchus (about 190–120 bce) who compiled the
first known star catalog. Almost 300 years later, Ptolemy used
Favorite Stars the magnitude scale in his catalog, which was substantially
It is fun to know the names of the brighter stars, but they are based on Hipparchus’s previous work, and successive genera-
more than points of light in the sky. They are glowing spheres tions of astronomers have continued to use their system.
of gas resembling the Sun, each with its unique characteristics. Those early astronomers divided the stars into six classes.
Figure 2-5 identifies eight bright stars that can be adopted as The brightest stars were called first-magnitude stars and the next
Favorite Stars. As you study astronomy you will discover their brightest set, second-magnitude stars. The scale continued down-
colorful personalities and enjoy finding them in the evening sky. ward to sixth-magnitude stars, the faintest visible to the human
You will learn, for example, that Betelgeuse is not just an orange eye. Thus, the larger the magnitude number, the fainter the star.
point of light but is an aging, cool star more than 500 times This might make sense if you think of the brightest stars as first-
larger than the Sun. As you explore further in later chapters, you class stars and the faintest visible stars as sixth-class stars.
may want to add more Favorite Stars to your list. Ancient astronomers could only estimate magnitudes by
You can use the star charts at the end of this book to help eye, but modern astronomers can use scientific instruments to
you locate these Favorite Stars. You can see Polaris throughout measure the brightness of stars to high precision; so they have
the year from the Northern Hemisphere, but Sirius, Betelgeuse, carefully redefined the magnitude scale. For example, instead of
Rigel, and Aldebaran are only in the winter sky. Spica is a sum- saying that the star known by the charming name Chort (Theta
mer star, and Vega is visible in summer and fall evenings. Alpha Leonis) is third magnitude, they can say its magnitude is 3.34.
Centauri, only 4.4 ly away, is the bright star that is nearest to us, In the redefined scale, some stars are actually brighter than
but you have to travel to the latitude of southern Florida to magnitude 1.0. For example, Favorite Star Vega (also known as
glimpse it above the southern horizon. Alpha Lyrae) is so bright that its magnitude, 0.03, is almost
Sirius Alpha Canis Majoris Brightest star in the sky Winter

Betelgeuse Alpha Orionis Bright red star in Orion Winter
Rigel Beta Orionis Bright blue star in Orion Winter
Aldebaran Alpha Tauri Red eye of Taurus the Bull Winter
Polaris Alpha Ursae Minoris The North Star Year round
Vega Alpha Lyrae Brightest star in summer sky Summer
Spica Alpha Virginis Bright southern star Summer
Rigil Kentaurus Alpha Centauri Nearest bright star to the Sun Spring, far south
Taurus
Centaurus
Aldebaran
Betelgeuse
Orion
Alpha Crux
Rigel Centauri
Sirius
Southern
Canis Cross
Major
Little
Figure 2-5 Favorite Stars:
Virgo
Dipper Polaris Locate these bright stars in the
Vega Big
Dipper sky and learn about their char-
Cygnus
Lyra acteristics. Refer to the star
Spica charts in Appendix B, pages
A-11–A-13.
Chapter 2 A USER’S GUIDE TO THE SKY 15
Venus at Hubble
brightest Space
Telescope
Sirius limit
Full
Sun moon Polaris
Naked
eye limit
–30 –25 –20 –15 –10 –5 0 5 10 15 20 25 30
▲
Figure 2-6 The scale of apparent visual magnitudes extends
Apparent magnitude (mv) into negative numbers to represent the brightest objects and to
positive numbers larger than six to represent objects fainter
Brighter Fainter than the unaided human eye can see.
zero. A few are so bright that the modern magnitude scale must approximately 2.51 times brighter (has 2.51 times more flux
extend into negative numbers (Figure 2-6). On this scale, arriving at Earth) than the other.
Favorite Star Sirius—the brightest star in the sky—has a mag- You can practice using this definition for other pairs of
nitude of –1.46. Modern astronomers have had to extend the stars. For example, if two stars differ in brightness by 3 magni-
faint end of the magnitude scale as well. The faintest stars you tudes they will have a flux ratio of approximately 2.51 3 2.51 3
can see with your unaided eyes are about sixth magnitude, but 2.51, which is 2.513 or about 15.8. Table 2-1 shows the flux ratios
if you use a telescope, you can detect stars much fainter than corresponding to various magnitude differences. For example,
that. Magnitude numbers larger than 6 are needed to describe suppose one star is third magnitude and another star is ninth
such faint stars. magnitude. What is their flux ratio? In this case, the magnitude
These numbers are known as apparent visual magnitudes difference is six, and Table 2-1 shows the equivalent flux ratio is
(mV ) because they describe how the stars look to human eyes about 251. Therefore, light from one star is about 251 times
observing from Earth. Although some stars emit relatively large brighter than light from the other star.
amounts of infrared or ultraviolet light, human eyes can’t see A table is convenient, but for more precision you can use the
those types of radiation, and they are not included in the appar- relationship expressed as a simple formula. The flux ratio FA /FB
ent visual magnitude. The subscript V stands for visuall and is equal to 2.51 raised to the power of the magnitude difference
reminds you that only visible light is included. Also, apparent mB 2 m A :
visual magnitude does not take into account the distance to the
F m m
stars. In other words, a star’s apparent visual magnitude tells you
only how bright the star looks as seen from Earth, not about its F
actual light output.
If, for example, the difference between the magnitudes of two
stars is 6.32, then their flux ratio must be 2.516.32. A calculator
Magnitude and Flux tells you the answer: 336. Star A is about 336 times brighter
Your interpretation of brightness is quite subjective, depending than Star B, meaning that the flux received on Earth from Star
on both the physiology of human eyes and the psychology of A is 336 times greater than that from Star B.
perception. As a careful investigator, you should refer to fluxx, On the other hand, if you know the flux ratio of two stars
which is a measure of the light energy from a star that hits a and want to find their magnitude difference, it is convenient to
collecting area of one square meter in one second. Such mea- rearrange the preceding formula and write it as:
surements precisely and objectively define the brightness of
starlight. F
m m
Astronomers use a simple formula to convert between mag- F
nitudes and flux. If two stars have fluxes FA and FB, then the
ratio of their fluxes is FA /FB. To make today’s measurements The expression log means logarithm to the base 10. For example,
agree with ancient catalogs, astronomers have defined the mod- the light from Sirius is 24.2 times brighter than light from
ern magnitude scale so that two stars differing in brightness by Polaris. Their magnitude difference is therefore 2.5 log (24.2).
five magnitudes have a flux ratio of exactly 100. Therefore, two Your pocket calculator tells you the logarithm of 24.2 is 1.384,
stars that differ by 1 magnitude must have a flux ratio that so the magnitude difference is 2.5 3 1.384 which equals 3.46
equals the fifth root of 100, symbolized by or 1000.2, magnitudes. Thus, Sirius is 3.46 magnitudes brighter than
which is about 2.51; that is, the light from one star must be Polaris.
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DANCE ON STILTS AT THE GIRLS’ UNYAGO, NIUCHI
Newala, too, suffers from the distance of its water-supply—at least

the Newala of to-day does; there was once another Newala in a lovely
valley at the foot of the plateau. I visited it and found scarcely a trace
of houses, only a Christian cemetery, with the graves of several
missionaries and their converts, remaining as a monument of its
former glories. But the surroundings are wonderfully beautiful. A
thick grove of splendid mango-trees closes in the weather-worn
crosses and headstones; behind them, combining the useful and the
agreeable, is a whole plantation of lemon-trees covered with ripe
fruit; not the small African kind, but a much larger and also juicier
imported variety, which drops into the hands of the passing traveller,
without calling for any exertion on his part. Old Newala is now under
the jurisdiction of the native pastor, Daudi, at Chingulungulu, who,
as I am on very friendly terms with him, allows me, as a matter of
course, the use of this lemon-grove during my stay at Newala.
FEET MUTILATED BY THE RAVAGES OF THE “JIGGER”
(Sarcopsylla penetrans)
The water-supply of New Newala is in the bottom of the valley,

some 1,600 feet lower down. The way is not only long and fatiguing,
but the water, when we get it, is thoroughly bad. We are suffering not
only from this, but from the fact that the arrangements at Newala are
nothing short of luxurious. We have a separate kitchen—a hut built
against the boma palisade on the right of the baraza, the interior of
which is not visible from our usual position. Our two cooks were not
long in finding this out, and they consequently do—or rather neglect
to do—what they please. In any case they do not seem to be very
particular about the boiling of our drinking-water—at least I can
attribute to no other cause certain attacks of a dysenteric nature,
from which both Knudsen and I have suffered for some time. If a
man like Omari has to be left unwatched for a moment, he is capable
of anything. Besides this complaint, we are inconvenienced by the
state of our nails, which have become as hard as glass, and crack on
the slightest provocation, and I have the additional infliction of
pimples all over me. As if all this were not enough, we have also, for
the last week been waging war against the jigger, who has found his
Eldorado in the hot sand of the Makonde plateau. Our men are seen
all day long—whenever their chronic colds and the dysentery likewise
raging among them permit—occupied in removing this scourge of
Africa from their feet and trying to prevent the disastrous
consequences of its presence. It is quite common to see natives of
this place with one or two toes missing; many have lost all their toes,
or even the whole front part of the foot, so that a well-formed leg
ends in a shapeless stump. These ravages are caused by the female of
Sarcopsylla penetrans, which bores its way under the skin and there
develops an egg-sac the size of a pea. In all books on the subject, it is
stated that one’s attention is called to the presence of this parasite by
an intolerable itching. This agrees very well with my experience, so
far as the softer parts of the sole, the spaces between and under the
toes, and the side of the foot are concerned, but if the creature
penetrates through the harder parts of the heel or ball of the foot, it
may escape even the most careful search till it has reached maturity.
Then there is no time to be lost, if the horrible ulceration, of which
we see cases by the dozen every day, is to be prevented. It is much
easier, by the way, to discover the insect on the white skin of a
European than on that of a native, on which the dark speck scarcely
shows. The four or five jiggers which, in spite of the fact that I
constantly wore high laced boots, chose my feet to settle in, were
taken out for me by the all-accomplished Knudsen, after which I
thought it advisable to wash out the cavities with corrosive
sublimate. The natives have a different sort of disinfectant—they fill
the hole with scraped roots. In a tiny Makua village on the slope of
the plateau south of Newala, we saw an old woman who had filled all
the spaces under her toe-nails with powdered roots by way of
prophylactic treatment. What will be the result, if any, who can say?
The rest of the many trifling ills which trouble our existence are
really more comic than serious. In the absence of anything else to
smoke, Knudsen and I at last opened a box of cigars procured from
the Indian store-keeper at Lindi, and tried them, with the most
distressing results. Whether they contain opium or some other
narcotic, neither of us can say, but after the tenth puff we were both
“off,” three-quarters stupefied and unspeakably wretched. Slowly we
recovered—and what happened next? Half-an-hour later we were
once more smoking these poisonous concoctions—so insatiable is the
craving for tobacco in the tropics.
Even my present attacks of fever scarcely deserve to be taken
seriously. I have had no less than three here at Newala, all of which
have run their course in an incredibly short time. In the early
afternoon, I am busy with my old natives, asking questions and
making notes. The strong midday coffee has stimulated my spirits to
an extraordinary degree, the brain is active and vigorous, and work
progresses rapidly, while a pleasant warmth pervades the whole
body. Suddenly this gives place to a violent chill, forcing me to put on
my overcoat, though it is only half-past three and the afternoon sun
is at its hottest. Now the brain no longer works with such acuteness
and logical precision; more especially does it fail me in trying to
establish the syntax of the difficult Makua language on which I have
ventured, as if I had not enough to do without it. Under the
circumstances it seems advisable to take my temperature, and I do
so, to save trouble, without leaving my seat, and while going on with
my work. On examination, I find it to be 101·48°. My tutors are
abruptly dismissed and my bed set up in the baraza; a few minutes
later I am in it and treating myself internally with hot water and
lemon-juice.
Three hours later, the thermometer marks nearly 104°, and I make
them carry me back into the tent, bed and all, as I am now perspiring
heavily, and exposure to the cold wind just beginning to blow might
mean a fatal chill. I lie still for a little while, and then find, to my
great relief, that the temperature is not rising, but rather falling. This
is about 7.30 p.m. At 8 p.m. I find, to my unbounded astonishment,
that it has fallen below 98·6°, and I feel perfectly well. I read for an
hour or two, and could very well enjoy a smoke, if I had the
wherewithal—Indian cigars being out of the question.
Having no medical training, I am at a loss to account for this state
of things. It is impossible that these transitory attacks of high fever
should be malarial; it seems more probable that they are due to a
kind of sunstroke. On consulting my note-book, I become more and
more inclined to think this is the case, for these attacks regularly
follow extreme fatigue and long exposure to strong sunshine. They at
least have the advantage of being only short interruptions to my
work, as on the following morning I am always quite fresh and fit.
My treasure of a cook is suffering from an enormous hydrocele which
makes it difficult for him to get up, and Moritz is obliged to keep in
the dark on account of his inflamed eyes. Knudsen’s cook, a raw boy
from somewhere in the bush, knows still less of cooking than Omari;
consequently Nils Knudsen himself has been promoted to the vacant
post. Finding that we had come to the end of our supplies, he began
by sending to Chingulungulu for the four sucking-pigs which we had
bought from Matola and temporarily left in his charge; and when
they came up, neatly packed in a large crate, he callously slaughtered
the biggest of them. The first joint we were thoughtless enough to
entrust for roasting to Knudsen’s mshenzi cook, and it was
consequently uneatable; but we made the rest of the animal into a
jelly which we ate with great relish after weeks of underfeeding,
consuming incredible helpings of it at both midday and evening
meals. The only drawback is a certain want of variety in the tinned
vegetables. Dr. Jäger, to whom the Geographical Commission
entrusted the provisioning of the expeditions—mine as well as his
own—because he had more time on his hands than the rest of us,
seems to have laid in a huge stock of Teltow turnips,[46] an article of
food which is all very well for occasional use, but which quickly palls
when set before one every day; and we seem to have no other tins
left. There is no help for it—we must put up with the turnips; but I
am certain that, once I am home again, I shall not touch them for ten
years to come.
Amid all these minor evils, which, after all, go to make up the
genuine flavour of Africa, there is at least one cheering touch:
Knudsen has, with the dexterity of a skilled mechanic, repaired my 9
× 12 cm. camera, at least so far that I can use it with a little care.
How, in the absence of finger-nails, he was able to accomplish such a
ticklish piece of work, having no tool but a clumsy screw-driver for
taking to pieces and putting together again the complicated
mechanism of the instantaneous shutter, is still a mystery to me; but
he did it successfully. The loss of his finger-nails shows him in a light
contrasting curiously enough with the intelligence evinced by the
above operation; though, after all, it is scarcely surprising after his
ten years’ residence in the bush. One day, at Lindi, he had occasion
to wash a dog, which must have been in need of very thorough
cleansing, for the bottle handed to our friend for the purpose had an
extremely strong smell. Having performed his task in the most
conscientious manner, he perceived with some surprise that the dog
did not appear much the better for it, and was further surprised by
finding his own nails ulcerating away in the course of the next few
days. “How was I to know that carbolic acid has to be diluted?” he
mutters indignantly, from time to time, with a troubled gaze at his
mutilated finger-tips.
Since we came to Newala we have been making excursions in all
directions through the surrounding country, in accordance with old
habit, and also because the akida Sefu did not get together the tribal
elders from whom I wanted information so speedily as he had
promised. There is, however, no harm done, as, even if seen only
from the outside, the country and people are interesting enough.
The Makonde plateau is like a large rectangular table rounded off
at the corners. Measured from the Indian Ocean to Newala, it is
about seventy-five miles long, and between the Rovuma and the
Lukuledi it averages fifty miles in breadth, so that its superficial area
is about two-thirds of that of the kingdom of Saxony. The surface,
however, is not level, but uniformly inclined from its south-western
edge to the ocean. From the upper edge, on which Newala lies, the
eye ranges for many miles east and north-east, without encountering
any obstacle, over the Makonde bush. It is a green sea, from which
here and there thick clouds of smoke rise, to show that it, too, is
inhabited by men who carry on their tillage like so many other
primitive peoples, by cutting down and burning the bush, and
manuring with the ashes. Even in the radiant light of a tropical day
such a fire is a grand sight.
Much less effective is the impression produced just now by the
great western plain as seen from the edge of the plateau. As often as
time permits, I stroll along this edge, sometimes in one direction,
sometimes in another, in the hope of finding the air clear enough to
let me enjoy the view; but I have always been disappointed.
Wherever one looks, clouds of smoke rise from the burning bush,
and the air is full of smoke and vapour. It is a pity, for under more
favourable circumstances the panorama of the whole country up to
the distant Majeje hills must be truly magnificent. It is of little use
taking photographs now, and an outline sketch gives a very poor idea
of the scenery. In one of these excursions I went out of my way to
make a personal attempt on the Makonde bush. The present edge of
the plateau is the result of a far-reaching process of destruction
through erosion and denudation. The Makonde strata are
everywhere cut into by ravines, which, though short, are hundreds of
yards in depth. In consequence of the loose stratification of these
beds, not only are the walls of these ravines nearly vertical, but their
upper end is closed by an equally steep escarpment, so that the
western edge of the Makonde plateau is hemmed in by a series of
deep, basin-like valleys. In order to get from one side of such a ravine
to the other, I cut my way through the bush with a dozen of my men.
It was a very open part, with more grass than scrub, but even so the
short stretch of less than two hundred yards was very hard work; at
the end of it the men’s calicoes were in rags and they themselves
bleeding from hundreds of scratches, while even our strong khaki
suits had not escaped scatheless.
NATIVE PATH THROUGH THE MAKONDE BUSH, NEAR

MAHUTA
I see increasing reason to believe that the view formed some time
back as to the origin of the Makonde bush is the correct one. I have
no doubt that it is not a natural product, but the result of human
occupation. Those parts of the high country where man—as a very
slight amount of practice enables the eye to perceive at once—has not
yet penetrated with axe and hoe, are still occupied by a splendid
timber forest quite able to sustain a comparison with our mixed
forests in Germany. But wherever man has once built his hut or tilled
his field, this horrible bush springs up. Every phase of this process
may be seen in the course of a couple of hours’ walk along the main
road. From the bush to right or left, one hears the sound of the axe—
not from one spot only, but from several directions at once. A few
steps further on, we can see what is taking place. The brush has been
cut down and piled up in heaps to the height of a yard or more,
between which the trunks of the large trees stand up like the last
pillars of a magnificent ruined building. These, too, present a
melancholy spectacle: the destructive Makonde have ringed them—
cut a broad strip of bark all round to ensure their dying off—and also
piled up pyramids of brush round them. Father and son, mother and
son-in-law, are chopping away perseveringly in the background—too
busy, almost, to look round at the white stranger, who usually excites
so much interest. If you pass by the same place a week later, the piles
of brushwood have disappeared and a thick layer of ashes has taken
the place of the green forest. The large trees stretch their
smouldering trunks and branches in dumb accusation to heaven—if
they have not already fallen and been more or less reduced to ashes,
perhaps only showing as a white stripe on the dark ground.
This work of destruction is carried out by the Makonde alike on the
virgin forest and on the bush which has sprung up on sites already
cultivated and deserted. In the second case they are saved the trouble
of burning the large trees, these being entirely absent in the
secondary bush.
After burning this piece of forest ground and loosening it with the
hoe, the native sows his corn and plants his vegetables. All over the
country, he goes in for bed-culture, which requires, and, in fact,
receives, the most careful attention. Weeds are nowhere tolerated in
the south of German East Africa. The crops may fail on the plains,
where droughts are frequent, but never on the plateau with its
abundant rains and heavy dews. Its fortunate inhabitants even have
the satisfaction of seeing the proud Wayao and Wamakua working
for them as labourers, driven by hunger to serve where they were
accustomed to rule.
But the light, sandy soil is soon exhausted, and would yield no
harvest the second year if cultivated twice running. This fact has
been familiar to the native for ages; consequently he provides in
time, and, while his crop is growing, prepares the next plot with axe
and firebrand. Next year he plants this with his various crops and
lets the first piece lie fallow. For a short time it remains waste and
desolate; then nature steps in to repair the destruction wrought by
man; a thousand new growths spring out of the exhausted soil, and
even the old stumps put forth fresh shoots. Next year the new growth
is up to one’s knees, and in a few years more it is that terrible,
impenetrable bush, which maintains its position till the black
occupier of the land has made the round of all the available sites and
come back to his starting point.
The Makonde are, body and soul, so to speak, one with this bush.
According to my Yao informants, indeed, their name means nothing
else but “bush people.” Their own tradition says that they have been
settled up here for a very long time, but to my surprise they laid great
stress on an original immigration. Their old homes were in the
south-east, near Mikindani and the mouth of the Rovuma, whence
their peaceful forefathers were driven by the continual raids of the
Sakalavas from Madagascar and the warlike Shirazis[47] of the coast,
to take refuge on the almost inaccessible plateau. I have studied
African ethnology for twenty years, but the fact that changes of
population in this apparently quiet and peaceable corner of the earth
could have been occasioned by outside enterprises taking place on
the high seas, was completely new to me. It is, no doubt, however,
correct.
The charming tribal legend of the Makonde—besides informing us
of other interesting matters—explains why they have to live in the
thickest of the bush and a long way from the edge of the plateau,
instead of making their permanent homes beside the purling brooks
and springs of the low country.
“The place where the tribe originated is Mahuta, on the southern
side of the plateau towards the Rovuma, where of old time there was
nothing but thick bush. Out of this bush came a man who never
washed himself or shaved his head, and who ate and drank but little.
He went out and made a human figure from the wood of a tree
growing in the open country, which he took home to his abode in the
bush and there set it upright. In the night this image came to life and
was a woman. The man and woman went down together to the
Rovuma to wash themselves. Here the woman gave birth to a still-
born child. They left that place and passed over the high land into the
valley of the Mbemkuru, where the woman had another child, which
was also born dead. Then they returned to the high bush country of
Mahuta, where the third child was born, which lived and grew up. In
course of time, the couple had many more children, and called
themselves Wamatanda. These were the ancestral stock of the
Makonde, also called Wamakonde,[48] i.e., aborigines. Their
forefather, the man from the bush, gave his children the command to
bury their dead upright, in memory of the mother of their race who
was cut out of wood and awoke to life when standing upright. He also
warned them against settling in the valleys and near large streams,
for sickness and death dwelt there. They were to make it a rule to
have their huts at least an hour’s walk from the nearest watering-
place; then their children would thrive and escape illness.”
The explanation of the name Makonde given by my informants is
somewhat different from that contained in the above legend, which I
extract from a little book (small, but packed with information), by
Pater Adams, entitled Lindi und sein Hinterland. Otherwise, my
results agree exactly with the statements of the legend. Washing?
Hapana—there is no such thing. Why should they do so? As it is, the
supply of water scarcely suffices for cooking and drinking; other
people do not wash, so why should the Makonde distinguish himself
by such needless eccentricity? As for shaving the head, the short,
woolly crop scarcely needs it,[49] so the second ancestral precept is
likewise easy enough to follow. Beyond this, however, there is
nothing ridiculous in the ancestor’s advice. I have obtained from
various local artists a fairly large number of figures carved in wood,
ranging from fifteen to twenty-three inches in height, and
representing women belonging to the great group of the Mavia,
Makonde, and Matambwe tribes. The carving is remarkably well
done and renders the female type with great accuracy, especially the
keloid ornamentation, to be described later on. As to the object and
meaning of their works the sculptors either could or (more probably)
would tell me nothing, and I was forced to content myself with the
scanty information vouchsafed by one man, who said that the figures
were merely intended to represent the nembo—the artificial
deformations of pelele, ear-discs, and keloids. The legend recorded
by Pater Adams places these figures in a new light. They must surely
be more than mere dolls; and we may even venture to assume that
they are—though the majority of present-day Makonde are probably
unaware of the fact—representations of the tribal ancestress.
The references in the legend to the descent from Mahuta to the
Rovuma, and to a journey across the highlands into the Mbekuru
valley, undoubtedly indicate the previous history of the tribe, the
travels of the ancestral pair typifying the migrations of their
descendants. The descent to the neighbouring Rovuma valley, with
its extraordinary fertility and great abundance of game, is intelligible
at a glance—but the crossing of the Lukuledi depression, the ascent
to the Rondo Plateau and the descent to the Mbemkuru, also lie
within the bounds of probability, for all these districts have exactly
the same character as the extreme south. Now, however, comes a
point of especial interest for our bacteriological age. The primitive
Makonde did not enjoy their lives in the marshy river-valleys.
Disease raged among them, and many died. It was only after they
had returned to their original home near Mahuta, that the health
conditions of these people improved. We are very apt to think of the
African as a stupid person whose ignorance of nature is only equalled
by his fear of it, and who looks on all mishaps as caused by evil
spirits and malignant natural powers. It is much more correct to
assume in this case that the people very early learnt to distinguish
districts infested with malaria from those where it is absent.
This knowledge is crystallized in the
ancestral warning against settling in the
valleys and near the great waters, the
dwelling-places of disease and death. At the
same time, for security against the hostile
Mavia south of the Rovuma, it was enacted
that every settlement must be not less than a
certain distance from the southern edge of the
plateau. Such in fact is their mode of life at the
present day. It is not such a bad one, and
certainly they are both safer and more
comfortable than the Makua, the recent
intruders from the south, who have made USUAL METHOD OF
good their footing on the western edge of the CLOSING HUT-DOOR
plateau, extending over a fairly wide belt of
country. Neither Makua nor Makonde show in their dwellings
anything of the size and comeliness of the Yao houses in the plain,
especially at Masasi, Chingulungulu and Zuza’s. Jumbe Chauro, a
Makonde hamlet not far from Newala, on the road to Mahuta, is the
most important settlement of the tribe I have yet seen, and has fairly
spacious huts. But how slovenly is their construction compared with
the palatial residences of the elephant-hunters living in the plain.
The roofs are still more untidy than in the general run of huts during
the dry season, the walls show here and there the scanty beginnings
or the lamentable remains of the mud plastering, and the interior is a
veritable dog-kennel; dirt, dust and disorder everywhere. A few huts
only show any attempt at division into rooms, and this consists
merely of very roughly-made bamboo partitions. In one point alone
have I noticed any indication of progress—in the method of fastening
the door. Houses all over the south are secured in a simple but
ingenious manner. The door consists of a set of stout pieces of wood
or bamboo, tied with bark-string to two cross-pieces, and moving in
two grooves round one of the door-posts, so as to open inwards. If
the owner wishes to leave home, he takes two logs as thick as a man’s
upper arm and about a yard long. One of these is placed obliquely
against the middle of the door from the inside, so as to form an angle
of from 60° to 75° with the ground. He then places the second piece
horizontally across the first, pressing it downward with all his might.
It is kept in place by two strong posts planted in the ground a few
inches inside the door. This fastening is absolutely safe, but of course
cannot be applied to both doors at once, otherwise how could the
owner leave or enter his house? I have not yet succeeded in finding
out how the back door is fastened.
MAKONDE LOCK AND KEY AT JUMBE CHAURO

This is the general way of closing a house. The Makonde at Jumbe
Chauro, however, have a much more complicated, solid and original
one. Here, too, the door is as already described, except that there is
only one post on the inside, standing by itself about six inches from
one side of the doorway. Opposite this post is a hole in the wall just
large enough to admit a man’s arm. The door is closed inside by a
large wooden bolt passing through a hole in this post and pressing
with its free end against the door. The other end has three holes into
which fit three pegs running in vertical grooves inside the post. The
door is opened with a wooden key about a foot long, somewhat
curved and sloped off at the butt; the other end has three pegs
corresponding to the holes, in the bolt, so that, when it is thrust
through the hole in the wall and inserted into the rectangular
opening in the post, the pegs can be lifted and the bolt drawn out.[50]
MODE OF INSERTING THE KEY
With no small pride first one householder and then a second

showed me on the spot the action of this greatest invention of the
Makonde Highlands. To both with an admiring exclamation of
“Vizuri sana!” (“Very fine!”). I expressed the wish to take back these
marvels with me to Ulaya, to show the Wazungu what clever fellows
the Makonde are. Scarcely five minutes after my return to camp at
Newala, the two men came up sweating under the weight of two
heavy logs which they laid down at my feet, handing over at the same
time the keys of the fallen fortress. Arguing, logically enough, that if
the key was wanted, the lock would be wanted with it, they had taken
their axes and chopped down the posts—as it never occurred to them
to dig them out of the ground and so bring them intact. Thus I have
two badly damaged specimens, and the owners, instead of praise,
come in for a blowing-up.
The Makua huts in the environs of Newala are especially
miserable; their more than slovenly construction reminds one of the
temporary erections of the Makua at Hatia’s, though the people here
have not been concerned in a war. It must therefore be due to
congenital idleness, or else to the absence of a powerful chief. Even
the baraza at Mlipa’s, a short hour’s walk south-east of Newala,
shares in this general neglect. While public buildings in this country
are usually looked after more or less carefully, this is in evident
danger of being blown over by the first strong easterly gale. The only
attractive object in this whole district is the grave of the late chief
Mlipa. I visited it in the morning, while the sun was still trying with
partial success to break through the rolling mists, and the circular
grove of tall euphorbias, which, with a broken pot, is all that marks
the old king’s resting-place, impressed one with a touch of pathos.
Even my very materially-minded carriers seemed to feel something
of the sort, for instead of their usual ribald songs, they chanted
solemnly, as we marched on through the dense green of the Makonde
bush:—
“We shall arrive with the great master; we stand in a row and have
no fear about getting our food and our money from the Serkali (the
Government). We are not afraid; we are going along with the great
master, the lion; we are going down to the coast and back.”
With regard to the characteristic features of the various tribes here
on the western edge of the plateau, I can arrive at no other
conclusion than the one already come to in the plain, viz., that it is
impossible for anyone but a trained anthropologist to assign any
given individual at once to his proper tribe. In fact, I think that even
an anthropological specialist, after the most careful examination,
might find it a difficult task to decide. The whole congeries of peoples
collected in the region bounded on the west by the great Central
African rift, Tanganyika and Nyasa, and on the east by the Indian
Ocean, are closely related to each other—some of their languages are
only distinguished from one another as dialects of the same speech,
and no doubt all the tribes present the same shape of skull and
structure of skeleton. Thus, surely, there can be no very striking
differences in outward appearance.
Even did such exist, I should have no time
to concern myself with them, for day after day,
I have to see or hear, as the case may be—in
any case to grasp and record—an
extraordinary number of ethnographic
phenomena. I am almost disposed to think it
fortunate that some departments of inquiry, at
least, are barred by external circumstances.
Chief among these is the subject of iron-
working. We are apt to think of Africa as a
country where iron ore is everywhere, so to
speak, to be picked up by the roadside, and
where it would be quite surprising if the
inhabitants had not learnt to smelt the
material ready to their hand. In fact, the
knowledge of this art ranges all over the
continent, from the Kabyles in the north to the
Kafirs in the south. Here between the Rovuma
and the Lukuledi the conditions are not so
favourable. According to the statements of the
Makonde, neither ironstone nor any other
form of iron ore is known to them. They have
not therefore advanced to the art of smelting
the metal, but have hitherto bought all their
THE ANCESTRESS OF
THE MAKONDE
iron implements from neighbouring tribes.
Even in the plain the inhabitants are not much
better off. Only one man now living is said to
understand the art of smelting iron. This old fundi lives close to
Huwe, that isolated, steep-sided block of granite which rises out of
the green solitude between Masasi and Chingulungulu, and whose
jagged and splintered top meets the traveller’s eye everywhere. While
still at Masasi I wished to see this man at work, but was told that,
frightened by the rising, he had retired across the Rovuma, though
he would soon return. All subsequent inquiries as to whether the
fundi had come back met with the genuine African answer, “Bado”
(“Not yet”).
BRAZIER
Some consolation was afforded me by a brassfounder, whom I

came across in the bush near Akundonde’s. This man is the favourite
of women, and therefore no doubt of the gods; he welds the glittering
brass rods purchased at the coast into those massive, heavy rings
which, on the wrists and ankles of the local fair ones, continually give
me fresh food for admiration. Like every decent master-craftsman he
had all his tools with him, consisting of a pair of bellows, three
crucibles and a hammer—nothing more, apparently. He was quite
willing to show his skill, and in a twinkling had fixed his bellows on
the ground. They are simply two goat-skins, taken off whole, the four
legs being closed by knots, while the upper opening, intended to
admit the air, is kept stretched by two pieces of wood. At the lower
end of the skin a smaller opening is left into which a wooden tube is
stuck. The fundi has quickly borrowed a heap of wood-embers from
the nearest hut; he then fixes the free ends of the two tubes into an
earthen pipe, and clamps them to the ground by means of a bent
piece of wood. Now he fills one of his small clay crucibles, the dross
on which shows that they have been long in use, with the yellow
material, places it in the midst of the embers, which, at present are
only faintly glimmering, and begins his work. In quick alternation
the smith’s two hands move up and down with the open ends of the
bellows; as he raises his hand he holds the slit wide open, so as to let
the air enter the skin bag unhindered. In pressing it down he closes
the bag, and the air puffs through the bamboo tube and clay pipe into
the fire, which quickly burns up. The smith, however, does not keep
on with this work, but beckons to another man, who relieves him at
the bellows, while he takes some more tools out of a large skin pouch
carried on his back. I look on in wonder as, with a smooth round
stick about the thickness of a finger, he bores a few vertical holes into
the clean sand of the soil. This should not be difficult, yet the man
seems to be taking great pains over it. Then he fastens down to the
ground, with a couple of wooden clamps, a neat little trough made by
splitting a joint of bamboo in half, so that the ends are closed by the
two knots. At last the yellow metal has attained the right consistency,
and the fundi lifts the crucible from the fire by means of two sticks
split at the end to serve as tongs. A short swift turn to the left—a
tilting of the crucible—and the molten brass, hissing and giving forth
clouds of smoke, flows first into the bamboo mould and then into the
holes in the ground.
The technique of this backwoods craftsman may not be very far
advanced, but it cannot be denied that he knows how to obtain an
adequate result by the simplest means. The ladies of highest rank in
this country—that is to say, those who can afford it, wear two kinds
of these massive brass rings, one cylindrical, the other semicircular
in section. The latter are cast in the most ingenious way in the
bamboo mould, the former in the circular hole in the sand. It is quite
a simple matter for the fundi to fit these bars to the limbs of his fair
customers; with a few light strokes of his hammer he bends the
pliable brass round arm or ankle without further inconvenience to
the wearer.
SHAPING THE POT
SMOOTHING WITH MAIZE-COB
CUTTING THE EDGE

FINISHING THE BOTTOM
LAST SMOOTHING BEFORE

BURNING
FIRING THE BRUSH-PILE

LIGHTING THE FARTHER SIDE OF
THE PILE
TURNING THE RED-HOT VESSEL
NYASA WOMAN MAKING POTS AT MASASI

Pottery is an art which must always and everywhere excite the
interest of the student, just because it is so intimately connected with
the development of human culture, and because its relics are one of
the principal factors in the reconstruction of our own condition in
prehistoric times. I shall always remember with pleasure the two or
three afternoons at Masasi when Salim Matola’s mother, a slightly-
built, graceful, pleasant-looking woman, explained to me with
touching patience, by means of concrete illustrations, the ceramic art
of her people. The only implements for this primitive process were a
lump of clay in her left hand, and in the right a calabash containing
the following valuables: the fragment of a maize-cob stripped of all
its grains, a smooth, oval pebble, about the size of a pigeon’s egg, a
few chips of gourd-shell, a bamboo splinter about the length of one’s
hand, a small shell, and a bunch of some herb resembling spinach.
Nothing more. The woman scraped with the
shell a round, shallow hole in the soft, fine
sand of the soil, and, when an active young
girl had filled the calabash with water for her,
she began to knead the clay. As if by magic it
gradually assumed the shape of a rough but
already well-shaped vessel, which only wanted
a little touching up with the instruments
before mentioned. I looked out with the
MAKUA WOMAN closest attention for any indication of the use
MAKING A POT. of the potter’s wheel, in however rudimentary
SHOWS THE a form, but no—hapana (there is none). The
BEGINNINGS OF THE embryo pot stood firmly in its little
POTTER’S WHEEL
depression, and the woman walked round it in
a stooping posture, whether she was removing
small stones or similar foreign bodies with the maize-cob, smoothing
the inner or outer surface with the splinter of bamboo, or later, after
letting it dry for a day, pricking in the ornamentation with a pointed
bit of gourd-shell, or working out the bottom, or cutting the edge
with a sharp bamboo knife, or giving the last touches to the finished
vessel. This occupation of the women is infinitely toilsome, but it is
without doubt an accurate reproduction of the process in use among
our ancestors of the Neolithic and Bronze ages.
There is no doubt that the invention of pottery, an item in human
progress whose importance cannot be over-estimated, is due to
women. Rough, coarse and unfeeling, the men of the horde range
over the countryside. When the united cunning of the hunters has
succeeded in killing the game; not one of them thinks of carrying
home the spoil. A bright fire, kindled by a vigorous wielding of the
drill, is crackling beside them; the animal has been cleaned and cut
up secundum artem, and, after a slight singeing, will soon disappear
under their sharp teeth; no one all this time giving a single thought
to wife or child.
To what shifts, on the other hand, the primitive wife, and still more
the primitive mother, was put! Not even prehistoric stomachs could
endure an unvarying diet of raw food. Something or other suggested
the beneficial effect of hot water on the majority of approved but
indigestible dishes. Perhaps a neighbour had tried holding the hard
roots or tubers over the fire in a calabash filled with water—or maybe
an ostrich-egg-shell, or a hastily improvised vessel of bark. They
became much softer and more palatable than they had previously
been; but, unfortunately, the vessel could not stand the fire and got
charred on the outside. That can be remedied, thought our
ancestress, and plastered a layer of wet clay round a similar vessel.
This is an improvement; the cooking utensil remains uninjured, but
the heat of the fire has shrunk it, so that it is loose in its shell. The
next step is to detach it, so, with a firm grip and a jerk, shell and
kernel are separated, and pottery is invented. Perhaps, however, the
discovery which led to an intelligent use of the burnt-clay shell, was
made in a slightly different way. Ostrich-eggs and calabashes are not
to be found in every part of the world, but everywhere mankind has
arrived at the art of making baskets out of pliant materials, such as
bark, bast, strips of palm-leaf, supple twigs, etc. Our inventor has no
water-tight vessel provided by nature. “Never mind, let us line the
basket with clay.” This answers the purpose, but alas! the basket gets
burnt over the blazing fire, the woman watches the process of
cooking with increasing uneasiness, fearing a leak, but no leak
appears. The food, done to a turn, is eaten with peculiar relish; and
the cooking-vessel is examined, half in curiosity, half in satisfaction
at the result. The plastic clay is now hard as stone, and at the same
time looks exceedingly well, for the neat plaiting of the burnt basket
is traced all over it in a pretty pattern. Thus, simultaneously with
pottery, its ornamentation was invented.
Primitive woman has another claim to respect. It was the man,
roving abroad, who invented the art of producing fire at will, but the
woman, unable to imitate him in this, has been a Vestal from the
earliest times. Nothing gives so much trouble as the keeping alight of
the smouldering brand, and, above all, when all the men are absent
from the camp. Heavy rain-clouds gather, already the first large
drops are falling, the first gusts of the storm rage over the plain. The
little flame, a greater anxiety to the woman than her own children,
flickers unsteadily in the blast. What is to be done? A sudden thought
occurs to her, and in an instant she has constructed a primitive hut
out of strips of bark, to protect the flame against rain and wind.
This, or something very like it, was the way in which the principle
of the house was discovered; and even the most hardened misogynist
cannot fairly refuse a woman the credit of it. The protection of the
hearth-fire from the weather is the germ from which the human
dwelling was evolved. Men had little, if any share, in this forward
step, and that only at a late stage. Even at the present day, the
plastering of the housewall with clay and the manufacture of pottery
are exclusively the women’s business. These are two very significant
survivals. Our European kitchen-garden, too, is originally a woman’s
invention, and the hoe, the primitive instrument of agriculture, is,
characteristically enough, still used in this department. But the
noblest achievement which we owe to the other sex is unquestionably
the art of cookery. Roasting alone—the oldest process—is one for
which men took the hint (a very obvious one) from nature. It must
have been suggested by the scorched carcase of some animal
overtaken by the destructive forest-fires. But boiling—the process of
improving organic substances by the help of water heated to boiling-
point—is a much later discovery. It is so recent that it has not even
yet penetrated to all parts of the world. The Polynesians understand
how to steam food, that is, to cook it, neatly wrapped in leaves, in a
hole in the earth between hot stones, the air being excluded, and
(sometimes) a few drops of water sprinkled on the stones; but they
do not understand boiling.
To come back from this digression, we find that the slender Nyasa
woman has, after once more carefully examining the finished pot,
put it aside in the shade to dry. On the following day she sends me
word by her son, Salim Matola, who is always on hand, that she is
going to do the burning, and, on coming out of my house, I find her
already hard at work. She has spread on the ground a layer of very
dry sticks, about as thick as one’s thumb, has laid the pot (now of a
yellowish-grey colour) on them, and is piling brushwood round it.
My faithful Pesa mbili, the mnyampara, who has been standing by,
most obligingly, with a lighted stick, now hands it to her. Both of
them, blowing steadily, light the pile on the lee side, and, when the
flame begins to catch, on the weather side also. Soon the whole is in a
blaze, but the dry fuel is quickly consumed and the fire dies down, so
that we see the red-hot vessel rising from the ashes. The woman
turns it continually with a long stick, sometimes one way and
sometimes another, so that it may be evenly heated all over. In
twenty minutes she rolls it out of the ash-heap, takes up the bundle
of spinach, which has been lying for two days in a jar of water, and
sprinkles the red-hot clay with it. The places where the drops fall are
marked by black spots on the uniform reddish-brown surface. With a
sigh of relief, and with visible satisfaction, the woman rises to an
erect position; she is standing just in a line between me and the fire,
from which a cloud of smoke is just rising: I press the ball of my
camera, the shutter clicks—the apotheosis is achieved! Like a
priestess, representative of her inventive sex, the graceful woman
stands: at her feet the hearth-fire she has given us beside her the
invention she has devised for us, in the background the home she has
built for us.
At Newala, also, I have had the manufacture of pottery carried on
in my presence. Technically the process is better than that already
described, for here we find the beginnings of the potter’s wheel,
which does not seem to exist in the plains; at least I have seen
nothing of the sort. The artist, a frightfully stupid Makua woman, did
not make a depression in the ground to receive the pot she was about
to shape, but used instead a large potsherd. Otherwise, she went to
work in much the same way as Salim’s mother, except that she saved
herself the trouble of walking round and round her work by squatting
at her ease and letting the pot and potsherd rotate round her; this is
surely the first step towards a machine. But it does not follow that
the pot was improved by the process. It is true that it was beautifully
rounded and presented a very creditable appearance when finished,
but the numerous large and small vessels which I have seen, and, in
part, collected, in the “less advanced” districts, are no less so. We
moderns imagine that instruments of precision are necessary to
produce excellent results. Go to the prehistoric collections of our
museums and look at the pots, urns and bowls of our ancestors in the
dim ages of the past, and you will at once perceive your error.
MAKING LONGITUDINAL CUT IN
BARK
DRAWING THE BARK OFF THE LOG
REMOVING THE OUTER BARK

BEATING THE BARK
WORKING THE BARK-CLOTH AFTER BEATING, TO MAKE IT

SOFT
MANUFACTURE OF BARK-CLOTH AT NEWALA

To-day, nearly the whole population of German East Africa is
clothed in imported calico. This was not always the case; even now in
some parts of the north dressed skins are still the prevailing wear,
and in the north-western districts—east and north of Lake
Tanganyika—lies a zone where bark-cloth has not yet been
superseded. Probably not many generations have passed since such
bark fabrics and kilts of skins were the only clothing even in the
south. Even to-day, large quantities of this bright-red or drab
material are still to be found; but if we wish to see it, we must look in
the granaries and on the drying stages inside the native huts, where
it serves less ambitious uses as wrappings for those seeds and fruits
which require to be packed with special care. The salt produced at
Masasi, too, is packed for transport to a distance in large sheets of
bark-cloth. Wherever I found it in any degree possible, I studied the
process of making this cloth. The native requisitioned for the
purpose arrived, carrying a log between two and three yards long and
as thick as his thigh, and nothing else except a curiously-shaped
mallet and the usual long, sharp and pointed knife which all men and
boys wear in a belt at their backs without a sheath—horribile dictu!
[51]
Silently he squats down before me, and with two rapid cuts has
drawn a couple of circles round the log some two yards apart, and
slits the bark lengthwise between them with the point of his knife.
With evident care, he then scrapes off the outer rind all round the
log, so that in a quarter of an hour the inner red layer of the bark
shows up brightly-coloured between the two untouched ends. With
some trouble and much caution, he now loosens the bark at one end,
and opens the cylinder. He then stands up, takes hold of the free
edge with both hands, and turning it inside out, slowly but steadily
pulls it off in one piece. Now comes the troublesome work of
scraping all superfluous particles of outer bark from the outside of
the long, narrow piece of material, while the inner side is carefully
scrutinised for defective spots. At last it is ready for beating. Having
signalled to a friend, who immediately places a bowl of water beside
him, the artificer damps his sheet of bark all over, seizes his mallet,
lays one end of the stuff on the smoothest spot of the log, and
hammers away slowly but continuously. “Very simple!” I think to
myself. “Why, I could do that, too!”—but I am forced to change my
opinions a little later on; for the beating is quite an art, if the fabric is
not to be beaten to pieces. To prevent the breaking of the fibres, the
stuff is several times folded across, so as to interpose several
thicknesses between the mallet and the block. At last the required
state is reached, and the fundi seizes the sheet, still folded, by both
ends, and wrings it out, or calls an assistant to take one end while he
holds the other. The cloth produced in this way is not nearly so fine
and uniform in texture as the famous Uganda bark-cloth, but it is
quite soft, and, above all, cheap.
Now, too, I examine the mallet. My craftsman has been using the
simpler but better form of this implement, a conical block of some
hard wood, its base—the striking surface—being scored across and
across with more or less deeply-cut grooves, and the handle stuck
into a hole in the middle. The other and earlier form of mallet is
shaped in the same way, but the head is fastened by an ingenious
network of bark strips into the split bamboo serving as a handle. The
observation so often made, that ancient customs persist longest in
connection with religious ceremonies and in the life of children, here
finds confirmation. As we shall soon see, bark-cloth is still worn
during the unyago,[52] having been prepared with special solemn
ceremonies; and many a mother, if she has no other garment handy,
will still put her little one into a kilt of bark-cloth, which, after all,
looks better, besides being more in keeping with its African
surroundings, than the ridiculous bit of print from Ulaya.
MAKUA WOMEN

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The Solar System 9th Edition, (Ebook

For your course and learning solutions, visit www.cengage.com.

Part 2: The Stars

Part 3: The Solar System

Chapter 4 | Origins of Modern Astronomy 52 Concept Art Portfolios

Chapter 5 | Gravity 79 Orbits 88–89

Chapter 9 | Perspective: Origins 175

Solar Activity and the Sun–Earth Connection 162–163

Star Formation in the Orion Nebula 178–179

Formation of Planetary Nebulae and White Dwarfs 182–183

Galaxy Classiﬁcation 186–187

Celestial Proﬁle 1 | The Sun 148

Focus on Fundamentals 3 | Temperature, Heat, and Thermal

Chapter 12 | The Moon and Mercury: Comparing

Concept Art Portfolios

Mountain View, California, as director of education and public outreach for

Mike Seeds has been a professor of physics and astronomy at Franklin

xii ABOUT THE AUTHORS

NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center/GOES

Visual-wavelength image {AA} of Earth from the GOES (Geostationary

▲ Figure 1-3 This box ■ represents the relative size of the

2 PART 1 EXPLORING THE SKY

© 2016 Cengage Learning ®; images: NASA

shown in the inset at the bottom right of Figure 1-5.) AU

Chapter 1 HERE AND NOW 3

© 2016 Cengage Learning ®

rated by distances about 30 times larger than that.

4 PART 1 EXPLORING THE SKY

Chapter 1 HERE AND NOW 5

tures, you are at the frontier of human knowledge.

1-2 When Is Now?

6 PART 1 EXPLORING THE SKY

Chapter 1 HERE AND NOW 7

What Are We? Par ticipants

8 PART 1 EXPLORING THE SKY

Chapter 1 HERE AND NOW 9

10 PART 1 EXPLORING THE SKY

▶ How are the brightnesses of stars measured and

Babek Tafreshi/SSPL/Getty Images

A long-exposure photograph of the Milky Way, the planet Jupiter (bright

Figure 2-1 The constellations are an ancient heritage

12 PART 1 EXPLORING THE SKY

Boston: John B. Russell, 1837; Panel b: © 2016 Cengage Learning ®

Panel a: From Duncan Bradford, Wonders of the Heavens,

▲ Figure 2-2 (a) In antiquity, constellation boundaries were

Chapter 2 A USER’S GUIDE TO THE SKY 13

14 PART 1 EXPLORING THE SKY

Sirius Alpha Canis Majoris Brightest star in the sky Winter

Chapter 2 A USER’S GUIDE TO THE SKY 15

–30 –25 –20 –15 –10 –5 0 5 10 15 20 25 30

16 PART 1 EXPLORING THE SKY

Newala, too, suffers from the distance of its water-supply—at least

The water-supply of New Newala is in the bottom of the valley,

NATIVE PATH THROUGH THE MAKONDE BUSH, NEAR

MAKONDE LOCK AND KEY AT JUMBE CHAURO

MODE OF INSERTING THE KEY

With no small pride first one householder and then a second

Some consolation was afforded me by a brassfounder, whom I

SMOOTHING WITH MAIZE-COB

CUTTING THE EDGE

LAST SMOOTHING BEFORE

FIRING THE BRUSH-PILE

TURNING THE RED-HOT VESSEL