A “visual tour through the under-appreciated chemical beauty that surrounds us”—with astonishing photographs of the scientific processes that create snowflakes, bubbles, flames, and other natural wonders (WIRED)

Chemistry is not just about microscopic atoms doing inscrutable things; it is the process that makes flowers and galaxies. We rely on it for bread-baking, vegetable-growing, and producing the materials of daily life. In stunning images and illuminating text, this book captures chemistry as it unfolds.
 
Using such techniques as microphotography, time-lapse photography, and infrared thermal imaging, The Beauty of Chemistry shows us how chemistry underpins the formation of snowflakes, the science of champagne, the colors of flowers, and other wonders of nature and technology. We see the marvelous configurations of chemical gardens; the amazing transformations of evaporation, distillation, and precipitation; heat made visible; and more. Choice 2021 Outstanding Academic Title


"Far from portraying a routine lab procedure, this collection showcases chemistry's excitement and aesthetic allure."—Scientific American

"With atomic clarity, science writer Philip Ball narrates this visual tour through the under-appreciated chemical beauty that surrounds us."—WIRED

"Ball's scintillating book is a paean to chemical beauty in nature and laboratories, with lavish images created by Wenting Zhu, Yan Liang and the Chinese Chemical Society."—Nature