We are thrilled to have in stock a very rare book, 1st Edition, 1863: Observations of the Spots on the Sun... Made at Redhill by Richard Christopher Carrington.
R. C. Carrington (1826-1875) was a British amateur astronomer who had a tragic destiny. After thousands of direct observations (carried out over more than seven years) on sunspots, Carrington discovered the differential rotation of the Sun. This involves an extraordinary discovery: that the Sun is, in fact, a gazeous celestial body. The Sun rotates on its axis once in about 27 days. This rotation was first detected by observing the motion of sunspots [Carrington, 1863]. The Sun's rotation axis is tilted by about 7.25 degrees from the axis of the Earth's orbit so we see more of the Sun's north pole in September of each year and more of its south pole in March. Since the Sun is a ball of gas/plasma, it does not have to rotate rigidly like the solid planets and moons do. In fact, the Sun's equatorial regions rotate faster (taking only about 24 days) than the polar regions (which rotate once in more than 30 days).
It is worth to note that this fantastic copy, miraculously escaped undamaged from two major fires, in 1898:
https://www.eveningnews24.co.uk/news/how-august-1-is-a-bad-day-in-the-history-1729500 and 2020: https://www.sussexexpress.co.uk/news/crime/arson-hit-eastbourne-bookshop-re-opens-2895580
See also a brilliant study by Cliff Ollier:
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/269480140_Global_Warming_and_Climate_Change_Science_and_Politics
Williams & Norgate, London, 1863. Hardcover. Condition: Very Good. First Edition. Bound in half brown leather with marbled boards and gilt titles to spine, this ex-Norwich Library has bookplate to fixed front endpaper, and small label to front board, but otherwise without library marks. Minor faults but for date VG. [11] 248 pp. + 166 full-page plates. Front board is partially detached, spine is slightly rubbed with tiny section (3cm x 1cm) where surface leather is missing. Both front and rear endpapers are lightly foxed. Corners slightly rubbed and worn, otherwise VG. Size: 4to.
Price: USD 1,500,000.00