If you have studied physics beyond school, you will likely have heard of the Rayleigh–Jeans law – an equation that accurately approximates the spectral radiance of blackbody radiation at long wavelengths. The equation is named after the English physicists John Rayleigh and James Jeans, the latter being the subject of a new biography: Sir James Jeans: Scientist, Philosopher and Musician, written by his son Christopher Jeans (co-authored with Alexandr Kozenko).

This book details Jeans’ extensive research in physics and astronomy, but, as the title suggests, it also explores his family life and his love of music. With its large dimensions and its numerous images, it feels like something of a family photo album – one in which the photos often feature household names like Albert Einstein and Marie Curie. Some pages even feel like a virtual museum, with photographs of intriguing artefacts, such as the chair in which Jeans did all his writing, and a letter from his correspondence with Ernest Rutherford.

In this comprehensive biography, Jeans’ personality comes through, as does the author’s fascination with his eminent father’s life. For those of us without such an immediate connection to the book’s subject, it offers a tangible record of the great upheaval in physics that happened in the last century, through the life of a scientist who was there at the heart of it.

• 2021 Cosmogonic Press £25pb 294pp