Reviews For Invisible Rainbows

Invisible Rainbows, by Alfredo Carpineti
Today has been a very frustrating day from the point of view of travel – apparently it’s too hot for trains to function – but at least that gave me time to read the book Invisible…
In the DarkJuly 10, 2026 at 11:57 am
Seeing Things in a Queer Light: Invisible Rainbows by Dr Alfredo Carpineti
Deeply fascinating and delightfully playful, Dr Alfredo Carpineti dazzles us with all the light we cannot see in this heartfelt ode to the universe beyond the visible. Illuminating in every sense of the word, Invisible Rainbows takes us on a breathtaking sightseeing tour of all the wavelengths of light that
Scene MagazineCaitlyn McBurnie
Bringing the invisible to light: a review of “Invisible Rainbows”
Invisible Rainbows is a popular astronomy book by astrophysicist and science journalist Alfredo Carpineti, organised around the electromagnetic spectrum and built around conversations with LGBTQIA+ astronomers from around the world. It is, at the same time, a celebration of modern astronomy and a clear argument about the relationship between science and the society that produces it. The book is rigorous and warm in equal measure, never letting one undermine the other, and offers science communicators a strong example of how popular science writing can hold technical depth and political clarity on the same page.
Journal of Science CommunicationAndrea Bandelli
Not many astronomy books start with a cocktail but then invisibleRainbows Is very much not a typical astronomy book. From cocktails (or mocktails, if that's more your thing) we move out to the centre of the Milky Way, and from there, across the entirety of the unseen Universe. invisible Rainbows is concerned not with the visible light that our perception of the world is based on, but with the rich electromagnetic spectrum that lies beyond human sight and yet shapes so much of the world around us, informing our understanding of astronomical phenomena. From radio waves to gamma waves, we consider the search for alien life, star formation, Jupiter's X-ray aurorae and the insights that a new generation of space technologies could bring. Covering a huge breadth of topics, this is an enjoyable and amusing trip across the electromagnetic spectrum, guided by debut author Alfredo Carpineti, Italian science journalist and founder of Pride in STEM. In general, however, the book is fairly light on scientific detail. This is less a science textbook and more a series of fun facts and anecdotes, amusing and unusual depictions and interesting conversations. In places, prioritising brevity makes the scientific content less clear than it might otherwise have been, meaning this probably isn't the best entry point for learning about the electromagnetic spectrum for complete beginners. But it is a great place to learn about the people in physics. The interviews throughout the book are warm, informative and perfectly capture the interviewees' joy and enthusiasm for nel work. ney remind us tnat physics is not (as it can sometimes seem) a dry or lifeless science. It is pushed forward by the daily efforts of passionate people all across the globe, with a huge diversity of experience. Many of these voices, like the unseen light that makes up so much of the world around us, have been rendered invisible for too long. Every single person interviewed for this book is an LGBTQIA+ scientist and …