Go to Hachette Book Group home

Search

Site Preferences

Show prices in:

Promotion

Use code BESTBOOKS24 for 25% off sitewide + free shipping over $35

By clicking “Accept,” you agree to the use of cookies and similar technologies on your device as set forth in our Cookie Policy and our Privacy Policy. Please note that certain cookies are essential for this website to function properly and do not require user consent to be deployed.

Measure of the Earth

The Enlightenment Expedition That Reshaped Our World

Measure of the Earth Open the full-size image

Contributors

By Larrie D. Ferreiro

Formats and Prices

Price

$11.99

Price

$15.99 CAD

Format

Format:

  1. ebook $11.99 $15.99 CAD
  2. Trade Paperback $21.99 $28.99 CAD

This item is a preorder. Your payment method will be charged immediately, and the product is expected to ship on or around May 31, 2011. This date is subject to change due to shipping delays beyond our control.

Also available from:

In the early eighteenth century, at the peak of the Enlightenment, an unlikely team of European scientists and naval officers set out on the world’s first international, cooperative scientific expedition.Intent on making precise astronomical measurements at the Equator, they were poised to resolve one of mankind’s oldest mysteries: the true shape of the Earth.

In Measure of the Earth, award-winning science writer Larrie D. Ferreiro tells the full story of the Geodesic Mission to the Equator for the very first time.It was an age when Europe was torn between two competing conceptions of the world: the followers of René Descartes argued that the Earth was elongated at the poles, even as IsaacNewton contended that it was flattened. A nation that could accurately determine the planet’s shape could securely navigate its oceans, giving it great military and imperial advantages.Recognizing this, France and Spain organized a joint expedition to colonial Peru, Spain’s wealthiest kingdom.Armed with the most advanced surveying and astronomical equipment, they would measure a degree of latitude at the Equator, which when compared with other measurements would reveal the shape of the world.But what seemed to be a straightforward scientific exercise was almost immediately marred by a series of unforeseen catastrophes, as the voyagers found their mission threatened by treacherous terrain, a deeply suspicious populace, and their own hubris.

A thrilling tale of adventure, political history, and scientific discovery, Measure of the Earth recounts the greatest scientific expedition of the Enlightenment through the eyes of the men who completed it — pioneers who overcame tremendous adversity to traverse the towering Andes Mountains in order to discern the Earth’s shape. In the process they also opened the eyes of Europe to the richness of South America and paved the way for scientific cooperation on a global scale.

Genre:

On Sale
May 31, 2011
Page Count
376 pages
Publisher
Basic Books
ISBN-13
9780465023455

You May Also Like

The New York Times Headlines in History Page-A-Day® Calendar 2025
The New York Times Headlines in History Page-A-Day® Calendar 2025 $17.99 $23.99 CAD
Sisters in Resistance
Sisters in Resistance $18.99 $24.99 CAD
History Decoded
History Decoded $12.99 $16.99 CAD
Wounded Knee
Wounded Knee $24.99 $31.99 CAD
If By Sea
If By Sea $24.99 $30.99 CAD

Larrie D. Ferreiro

About the Author

Larrie D. Ferreiro is the author and editor of several books on the history of science and technology, including Ships and Science, which received the North American Society for Oceanic History’s John Lyman Award for Best Book in Science and Technology. A frequent maritime contributor to the History Channel and the Discovery Channel, he was an on-screen historical consultant to a BBC documentary about the Geodesic Mission. He lives in Fairfax, Virginia.

Learn more about this author