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    When the Earth Had Two Moons: Cannibal Planets, Icy Giants, Dirty Comets, Dreadful Orbits, and the Origins of the Night Sky
    When the Earth Had Two Moons: Cannibal Planets, Icy Giants, Dirty Comets, Dreadful Orbits, and the Origins of the Night Sky
    When the Earth Had Two Moons: Cannibal Planets, Icy Giants, Dirty Comets, Dreadful Orbits, and the Origins of the Night Sky
    Audiobook9 hours

    When the Earth Had Two Moons: Cannibal Planets, Icy Giants, Dirty Comets, Dreadful Orbits, and the Origins of the Night Sky

    Written by Erik Asphaug

    Narrated by Adam Verner

    3.5/5

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    About this audiobook

    An astonishing exploration of planet formation and the origins of life by one of the world’s most innovative planetary geologists.

    In 1959, the Soviet probe Luna 3 took the first photos of the far side of the moon. Even in their poor resolution, the images stunned scientists: the far side is an enormous mountainous expanse, not the vast lava-plains seen from Earth. Subsequent missions have confirmed this in much greater detail.

    How could this be, and what might it tell us about our own place in the universe? As it turns out, quite a lot.

    Fourteen billion years ago, the universe exploded into being, creating galaxies and stars. Planets formed out of the leftover dust and gas that coalesced into larger and larger bodies orbiting around each star. In a sort of heavenly survival of the fittest, planetary bodies smashed into each other until solar systems emerged. Curiously, instead of being relatively similar in terms of composition, the planets in our solar system, and the comets, asteroids, satellites and rings, are bewitchingly distinct. So, too, the halves of our moon.

    In When the Earth Had Two Moons, esteemed planetary geologist Erik Asphaug takes us on an exhilarating tour through the farthest reaches of time and our galaxy to find out why. Beautifully written and provocatively argued, When the Earth Had Two Moons is not only a mind-blowing astronomical tour but a profound inquiry into the nature of life here—and billions of miles from home.

    Supplemental enhancement PDF accompanies the audiobook.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperAudio
    Release dateOct 29, 2019
    ISBN9780062895080
    Author

    Erik Asphaug

    Erik Asphaug is a professor in the Lunar and Planetary Laboratory at the University of Arizona. He studies planet formation and evolution and has been on the science teams of numerous past and upcoming NASA and international space missions. He lives with his family in Arizona.

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    3.5/5

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    • 3/5
      A well-known author stated that the best way to capture the audience's attention, whether simply to make something interesting or to impart information, is to tell a good story. Unfortunately, the author of this book entirely fails in that regard. While this work is certainly chock full of information, many times it reads more like an encyclopedia than a book. There is no narrative flow. Often just a litany of facts or theory followed by the inevitable metaphor.Although I am a fan of planetary science, and had high hopes, I was disappointed with this work. Not recommended.