Two amateur astronomers at Berkeley

Abstract

The book on Mechanics of the Physics at Berkeley, by C. Kittel, W.D. Knight and M.A. Ruderman, is proposing at the end of its first chapter some problems of simple astronomy within the solar system. The discussion begins with two amateur astronomers who set for themselves the goal of determining the diameter and mass of the Sun. Here we discuss the problems proposed by the book and some other matters on ancient and modern astronomical studies of the solar system.