Webb's Cosmos - by Marcin Sawicki (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

Webb's Cosmos is the definitive and most up-to-date book on the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) available today. Covering Webb's breathtaking discoveries from its launch in 2021 to 2025, Webb's Cosmos brings together beauty, wonder, and understanding in one spectacular volume. While older books show Webb's first images, all that was available when they were published, Webb's Cosmos includes many more images, and more recent ones.

Author Marcin Sawicki is an experienced science educator and a professional astronomer who actively uses Webb data in his own research. In this book he offers a uniquely informed perspective on what Webb's beautiful images mean. His lucid, engaging text takes us behind the splendor of the images and explains how they reveal information about the birth of stars, the growth of galaxies from tiny seeds in the early cosmic epochs to the grand structures around us today, and humanity's ongoing search for worlds beyond our Solar System.

Organized into ten richly illustrated chapters, the book explores topics such as star-forming regions where young stars form and grow, planets that orbit distant suns, and galaxies both nearby and in the farthest reaches of the cosmos. Along the way, readers also discover answers to frequently asked questions such as: How does NASA decide what Webb observes? How are Webb's digital observations processed to reveal the dazzling images we see? What are the immense scales and distances that Webb reveals?

Blending the visual beauty of a rich photo album with the insight of a working scientist and engaging prose of an experienced science communicator, Webb's Cosmos is both a feast for the eyes and a guided tour through humanity's newest and most powerful window on the Universe. It is the most complete and up-to-date celebration of the James Webb Space Telescope available today.

About the Author

Marcin Sawicki is a professional research astronomer who has been involved with the James Webb Space Telescope Project for more than two decades and is now extensively using Webb for research. He is the co-author of 20 research papers based on data taken with Webb. A professional educator and experienced science communicator, Sawicki is Professor of Astronomy and Physics at Saint Mary's University and has held prestigious appointments: Canada Research Chair, Canadian Space Agency Science Fellow and Plaskett Fellow.