This manual pertains to the Augustin Fresnel lens, a revolutionary optical device developed by Augustin Fresnel. This invention significantly enhanced the performance of lighthouses, providing brighter, farther-reaching, and more efficient illumination. The lens represented a brilliant feat of engineering, overcoming significant challenges in its development and implementation. Its impact extended beyond maritime safety, influencing geopolitical events and marking a pivotal advancement in lighting technology.
The purpose of this document is to provide comprehensive information regarding the Augustin Fresnel lens. It covers its scientific principles, historical context, and engineering design. This manual serves as a valuable resource for understanding the innovation and impact of Fresnel's work, detailing its development, adoption, and significance in the history of science and technology.
“Combin[es] matters of biography, science, engineering, technology, art, history, economics and politics seemingly effortlessly and definitely seamlessly. An excellent book and a joy to read.”—Henry Petroski, Wall Street Journal
Augustin Fresnel (1788–1827) shocked the scientific elite with his unique understanding of the physics of light. The lens he invented was a brilliant feat of engineering that made lighthouses blaze many times brighter, farther, and more efficiently. Battling the establishment, his own poor health, and the limited technology of the time, Fresnel was able to achieve his goal of illuminating the entire French coast. At first, the British sought to outdo the new Fresnel-equipped lighthouses as a matter of national pride. Americans, too, resisted abandoning their primitive lamps, but the superiority of the Fresnel lens could not be denied for long. Soon, from Dunkirk to Saigon, shores were brightened with it. The Fresnel legacy played an important role in geopolitical events, including the American Civil War. No sooner were Fresnel lenses finally installed along U.S. shores than they were drafted: the Union blockaded the Confederate coast; the Confederacy set about thwarting it by dismantling and hiding or destroying the powerful new lights.
Levitt’s scientific and historical account, rich in anecdote and personality, brings to life the fascinating untold story of Augustin Fresnel and his powerful invention.
Author: Levitt, Theresa
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
Illustration: n
Language: ENG
Title: A Short Bright Flash: Augustin Fresnel and the Birth of the Modern Lighthouse
Pages: 00288 (Encrypted EPUB)
On Sale: 2013-07-29
SKU-13/ISBN: 9780393350890
Category: Science : Physics - General
“Combin[es] matters of biography, science, engineering, technology, art, history, economics and politics seemingly effortlessly and definitely seamlessly. An excellent book and a joy to read.”—Henry Petroski, Wall Street Journal
Augustin Fresnel (1788–1827) shocked the scientific elite with his unique understanding of the physics of light. The lens he invented was a brilliant feat of engineering that made lighthouses blaze many times brighter, farther, and more efficiently. Battling the establishment, his own poor health, and the limited technology of the time, Fresnel was able to achieve his goal of illuminating the entire French coast. At first, the British sought to outdo the new Fresnel-equipped lighthouses as a matter of national pride. Americans, too, resisted abandoning their primitive lamps, but the superiority of the Fresnel lens could not be denied for long. Soon, from Dunkirk to Saigon, shores were brightened with it. The Fresnel legacy played an important role in geopolitical events, including the American Civil War. No sooner were Fresnel lenses finally installed along U.S. shores than they were drafted: the Union blockaded the Confederate coast; the Confederacy set about thwarting it by dismantling and hiding or destroying the powerful new lights.
Levitt’s scientific and historical account, rich in anecdote and personality, brings to life the fascinating untold story of Augustin Fresnel and his powerful invention.
Author: Levitt, Theresa
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
Illustration: n
Language: ENG
Title: A Short Bright Flash: Augustin Fresnel and the Birth of the Modern Lighthouse
Pages: 00288 (Encrypted EPUB)
On Sale: 2013-07-29
SKU-13/ISBN: 9780393350890
Category: Science : Physics - General
