Celestial Sleuth / Springer Praxis Books (PDF)

Dr. Donald Olson is a Professor of Physics and Astronomy at Texas State University, but prefers the terms "Celestial Sleuth." Olson received his Ph.D. in physics from the University of California-Berkeley, and after studying galaxy structure for two years at the University of Texas at Austin, he settled into Texas State, where he has been teaching since the early 1980s.

 

Over the past 25 years (1987-2012), the reputation of his department at Texas State University has been established by the publication of more than 40 articles published in such periodicals as The New York Times and Smithsonian Magazine. His work blurs the line between the hard science of forensic astronomy and the humanities. A longtime connoisseur of art and literature, Olson was approached in 1987 with a proposition that would help him merge the arts with his expertise in astronomy. An English professor asked for his help in interpreting astronomical references in Chaucer's "Canterbury Tales." Shortly afterward, a history professor had a similar request, this time looking at the impact of moonlight and the tides on the amphibious invasion at the Battle of Tarawa during World War II. He has since then gone on to be published in The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Sky and Telescope, and Smithsonian magazine, which called Olson "...the leading practitioner of...'forensic astronomy'."

From the book reviews:

“If you have ever wondered looking at a painting or a maybe while watching a film whether or not the astronomical objects are or were in the exact place as the artist depicted them or maybe they just added it to fill in an empty spot, then this book will be a delightful read for you. … you can find some quite famous paintings that will have their astronomical mysteries solved or about which you’ll find out a lot more.” (Kadri Tinn, AstroMadness.com, October, 2014)

“The book is in three parts, one dealing with art, the others with history and literature. … A good point is that the writing is straightforward and technical terms are avoided or explained. … I would … recommend the book. … the book is appealing to astronomers and non-astronomers alike and would make a nice present.” (Mona Evans, BellaOnline.com, July, 2014)

“The book is clearly set out, engagingly written, well referenced, and copiously illustrated. Art works are compared with recent and vintage photographs from the same view points. There is plenty of bibliography for the interested reader to follow up. One does not have to be an astronomer to enjoy it and I recommend it warmly — an illuminating read and also a good present for a non-astronomer.” (P. M. Williams, The Observatory, Vol. 134 (1240), June, 2014)

“Olson tells detective stories that cover an incredibly wide range of topics and well-known cases. He repeatedly comes up with surprising and evocative solutions, all with convincing proofs that scholars should have picked up decades or centuries earlier. The exciting revelations on famous cases make Celestial Sleuth a unique book. … Celestial Sleuth has become my all-time favorite astronomy book because of its beauty and fun, as well as its many startling and convincing new results.” (Bradley E. Schaefer, Sky & Telescope, May, 2014)

“Donald Olson, with colleagues and students, has published many Sky & Telescope articles