Richard Preston was born on August 5, 1954 in Cambridge, MA. He is a professor,
journalist, and the author of both fiction and non-fiction books. He has written
numerous articles and more than ten books.
First Light: The Search for the Edge of the Universe was published in 1987.
It tells the carefully-researched story of the Palomar Observatory in the San Gabriel
Mountains of California. The Hale Telescope is the tool astronomers use to examine
the edges of space and try to unravel the secrets of the universe. Kirkus Reviews
called it "the best popular account of astronomy in action."