First Light

Switching on Stars at the Dawn of Time, revised edition

By: Emma Chapman

Narrated by: Emma Chapman

Bloomsbury presents First Light written and read by Emma Chapman.

‘Illuminating and entertaining’
The Washington Post

Astronomers have successfully observed a great deal of the Universe’s history, from recording the afterglow of the Big Bang to visualising the shadow of a black hole. However when it comes to understanding how the Universe began and grew, we have literally been in the dark.

This book tells the story of the Cosmic Dawn – the time when the very first stars burst into life. These celestial giants were hundreds of times more massive than the Sun and a million times more luminous: lonely blue stars that lived fast and died young in enormous explosions, seeding the Universe with the elements that would eventually make up life itself.

First Light illuminates this previously unknown, billion-year timeline. Astrophysicist Emma Chapman tells how these stars formed, why they were so unusual and what they can teach us about the universe today. She also also gives a first-hand look at the immense telescopes that are taking us from the realm of theoretical physics towards the wonder of looking back in time using observational astronomy. This revised edition has been updated to contain the latest findings across astronomy, from radio interferometry to gravitational waves and contains a brand new chapter covering the triumphant discovery of the first galaxies by the James Webb Space Telescope.©2020 Emma Chapman (P)2020 Bloomsbury Publishing Plc

Heavy Britt accent

Had some difficulty understanding some words. Accent seems thick to me, but I'm not great at translating accents, especially for a lexicon I am not fluent in and technical words.

The last couple chapters provided some value, for me. Many of the science books have huge portions of history and this is no exception. I appreciate the "regular reader" approach, but I also desire lots of hard science generously distributed throughout.
The Webb is now active, so that topic is old news. I am not really interested in the detailed ups and downs of the processes for setting up experiments. Some, but not so much. I learned that there really isn't much known about the beginning and that real progress may take anther 7, or so, years. I was hoping for more content on how light first began to radiate and how those interactions truly impacted the speed of development for the rest of the universe.
Interesting topic. Needs more substance. Hire a reader? I'll give it another read to pick up things I missed. Looks to be a major topic when the aparatus is spun up.

Everything you didn't know about stars

If you're looking for a scientific scientifically interesting but still written for the general public this is the audiobook for you. The author does a credible job in a very pleasant British accent of explaining to you how the universe began burst began how the 1st stars formed how they led to our present day existence.

very good read

Covers quite a lot of new ground regarding Galaxy formation and types. fills a gap I've been looking for. could have been a little technical but it got there in the end mostly.

Beanie babies, Mick Jagger and cutting edge cosmology

I have actually listened to this book multiple times. I recommend as Emma Chapman's account of the history of astronomy, the rapid gains in knowledge in just the last 20 years and where the science is headed is just the right speed for the well informed layperson. Various pop culture references keep it light (indeed, she helps describe visible light with a reference to the album cover of Pink Floyd's "DSOTM"). But a joyful and sincere love of what she does cannot be hidden behind her easy humor and clever turn of phrase. I really enjoyed this.

Great Insight into the beginning of light

Emma Chapman’s relatable and witty description of the scientific effort that has taken place to find the universes very first stars is quite satisfying. She captures what it’s like to be on a scientific quest and gives us great insight into not only this fascinating topic, but to the overall process of astrophysics and discovery within academia. Beautifully read by the author, and easily one I can strongly recommend to those curious about cosmology and the biggest questions.