Beneath the Night

From stone age to space age, every human who has looked up at the night sky has seen the same stars in the same patterns. They reveal our entire history, as well as hinting at our ultimate fate. In Beneath the Night, Stuart Clark tells the full story of this relationship. From prehistoric cave art and Ancient Egyptian zodiacs to the modern era of satellites and space exploration, Clark reveals the history of a fascination that has shaped our scientific understanding; helped us navigate the terrestrial world; provided inspiration for our poets, artists and philosophers; and given us a place to project our hopes and fears. This is the story of the universe, and our place within it.

Stuart Clark is an astronomer and award-winning science writer for the Guardian, New Scientist, BBC Focus, and many other publications. He is writer and presenter of the 'Music of the Spheres' series for BBC R3, and author of several works of non-fiction and fiction that have been translated into more than twenty-five languages. He is a Visiting Fellow at the University of Hertfordshire, a Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society, former Vice Chair of the Association of British Science Writers and a consultant for the European Space Agency. In September 2020, the University of Hertfordshire awarded him an honorary Doctor of Science degree by for services to astronomy and the public understanding of science. His most recent book was Beneath the Night: How the Stars Have Shaped the History oh Human Kind.