A great leap forward in unravelling the mysteries of the Sun occurred way back in 1920 when Meghnad Saha made an important discovery that paved the way for a systematic study of stellar atmospheres in general. This book is about that great discovery and the man who made it.
A physicist and a prolific writer, Dr G Venkataraman has had a distinguished career in science and technology at BARC, Mumbai, IGCAR, Kalpakkam, and Anurag, DRDO, Hyderabad. He was a Jawaharlal Nehru Fellow from 1984 to 1986. He has also served as Vice Chancellor and Honorary Professor at the Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning, Prashanthi Nilayam. He is a recipient of many awards, including the Sir C V Raman Prize, C V Raman Centenary Medal, Padma Shri, Indira Gandhi Award and the Indian Science Congress Medal for his contributions to the popularisation of science.
Besides the Vignettes in Physics series, Dr Venkataraman has authored two monographs—Dynamics of Perfect Crystals and Beyond the Crystalline State. He is also the author of the widely acclaimed Journey into Light: Life and Science of C. V. Raman.