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This is the 2nd edition of a highly successful title on this fascinating and complex subject. Concentrating primarily on the theory behind the origin and the evolution of the universe, and where appropriate relating it to observation, the new features of the this addition include: An overall introduction to the book Two new chapters: Gravitational Lensing and Gravitational Waves Each part has a collection of exercises with solutions to numerical parts at the end of the book Contains a table of physical constants The addition of a consolidated bibilography

These proceedings provide a summary of the state-of-the-art in the understanding of physical processes which control galaxy formation. Many topics are discussed which present the latest observational results: dust extinction, the role of AGNs in the formation of massive galaxies, etc. How future instruments such as NGST, ALMA, FIRST, KMT and SKAI can help to resolve these questions is also addressed. The book will serve as a useful reference in the field for many years to come.

As the most powerful explosions that occurs in the universe, gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are one of the most exciting objects being studied in astrophysics. Creating more energy than the Sun does in its entire lifetime, GRBs create a blaze of light that will outshine every other object visible in the sky, enabling us to measure galaxies that are several million years old. GRBs cover various areas of astronomy and interest in them reaches a wide range of fields. Andrew Levan explores the fascinating history of these astronomical occurrences and details our current understanding of GRBs. The science behind them is rapidly moving and this book examines the knowledge that we now have as well as the questions that are continually being raised. Predominantly aimed at PhD students and researchers in the area, Gamma-Ray Bursts addresses this captivating topic and outlines the principles and initial applications of a fascinating astronomical phenomena

A special forum on critical issues in cosmology in celebraton of Princeton University's 250th birthday.The proceedings of this conference, held as part of Princeton University's 250th birthday celebrations, features lectures and discussions by many of the world's leading scientists on the status and future of modern cosmology.The volume offers the non-specialist a fascinating insight into the current status of cosmology and the issues of contention at the research frontiers of the science. It constitutes the proceedings of a special conference, held as part of Princeton University's 250 birthday celebrations, featuring lectures and discussions by many of the world's leading scientists on the status and future of modern cosmology. The volume is based on the format of a series of debates in which a range of conventional wisdom is reviewed, defended and critcised by renowned specialists in each field.The technical level of the volume is accessible to a very broad audience of non-specialists. This innovative exchange of ideas at the cutting edge of cosmology therefore offers an unusual opportunity for the average reader to savour the excitement of probing into the ultimate secrets of the universe.

Since the successful refurbishment mission, the Hubble Space Telescope has made dramatic and exciting progress in unravelling the nature of sources at high redshift. The upcoming installation of the next generation of instruments will give further impetus to the field, particularly in the infrared spectral region.The proceedings of this landmark meeting review the results of the first three years of post-repair data, including the deepest astronomical images ever obtained: the Hubble Deep Field. This was the first presentation of these exciting results at a major international conference. The interface between HST and ground-based facilities and planned programmes with forthcoming HST instruments are also extensively discussed.

This volume contains the talks presented at the International Workshop on Aspects of Dark Matter in Astro- and Particle Physics (DARK'96). It provides a thorough presentation and discussion of the topic of dark matter, which currently seems to be one of the most exciting problems of modern physics, in the perspectives of different disciplines like astronomy, astrophysics, cosmology and particle physics.The lectures and talks range from astronomical evidence in galaxies and galaxy clusters, recent information provided by X rays (ROSAT satellite) and by observation of MACHOs, to early universe and particle physics solutions to the dark matter problem, including simultaneous solutions to the problems of baryogenesis and dark matter. Beyond the favoured supersymmetric candidates, the more exotic dark matter proposals are also discussed. The experimental section examines the most recent efforts in direct and indirect experiments, including new techniques like cryogenic detectors and superheated droplet detectors, as well as efforts with large scale underground detectors like MACRO, Baksan, Baikal and AMANDA. Also, the potential of present and future (LHC) high energy accelerators is thoroughly discussed. A section on hot dark matter gives the current status of experiments searching for a neutrino mass, like double beta decay and neutrino oscillation experiments, including intermediate scale long baseline experiments.

This book contains the lectures delivered at the Fourth Paris Cosmology Colloquium held at the Observatoire de Paris from June 4 - 9, 1997. This Colloquium ‘Phase Transitions in Cosmology'is the first event of a EUROCONFERENCE series (‘Accompanying Measures'), with the support of the training and Mobility Programme of the Commision of the European Communities.The purpose of the Paris Cosmology Colloquia is to cover selected topics of high current interest in the interplay between cosmology and fundamental physics and to allow easy and fruitful interaction and communication between researchers in these areas. The main aim is to put in contact fundamental theoretical physics (including string theory) with real physical problems that arise in the study of the universe. The Paris Cosmology Colloquia are informal meetings which bring together physicists, astrophysicists and astronomers. Topics covered in this Fourth Paris Cosmology Colloquium included: cosmic microwave background, phase transitions in cosmology and evolution out of the equilibrium quantum fields, the value of the Hubble constant, fundamental strings in primordial cosmology, as well as other subjects of high current interest such as scaling laws in the interstellar medium and in the large scale structure, gravitational lensing and dark matter.