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Books > Science & Mathematics > Astronomy, space & time > Astronomical charts & atlases
With over 150,000 copies sold since its first publication, this is
one of the most popular astronomy books of all time. This unique
guidebook to the night sky shows you how to observe a host of
celestial wonders. Its distinct format of object-by-object spreads
illustrates how deep-sky objects and planets actually look through
a small telescope, while its large pages and spiral binding allow
for use outside. Along with updated star names and astronomical
information, this new edition provides links to a dedicated webpage
with up-to-date tables and images, and an improved planets chapter.
The many Dobsonian-friendly images and small telescope views have
been revised to account for changes in modern telescope technology,
such as larger field of view eyepieces. With dedicated chapters on
Northern and Southern Hemisphere objects, it's never been easier to
explore the night sky, wherever you are. Additional resources are
available on the accompanying website: www.cambridge.org/turnleft.
The introduction of the moving sphere as a model for understanding
the celestial phenomena caused a great breakthrough in scientific
thinking about the structure of the world. It provided the momentum
for making celestial globes and mapping the stars. Celestial globes
were produced first by Greek astronomers, and soon became greatly
appreciated in antiquity as decorative objects (3 antique globes).
The design and construction of the globe varied greatly as it
passed through the Arabic (10 scientific globes made before 1500)
and Medieval European cultures (3 scientific globes made before
1500). It was the starting-point for the design of many maps in
antiquity and later in the Middle Ages (33) serving to illustrate
books such as Aratus's Phaenomena. In the early fifteenth century
scientific celestial maps (5) were constructed in their own right,
independent of globes. In this book all extant celestial maps and
globes made before 1500 are described and analysed in detail. This
prestigious study will appeal to academic historians of science and
astronomy, and art historians alike.
Designed with the beginner in mind and useful to anyone interested in astronomy. Star Maps for Beginners is the classic guide to viewing and understanding the heavens. Its superb maps -- drawn in the shape of two crossed ellipses -- provide the reader with a unique perspective on the sky and have been widely acknowledged as the easiest system yet devised for locating any constellation at any time of the year. Now revised for the 1990s, with updated planet charts and a new section on spotting meteor showers. Star Maps for Beginners includes: 12 complete maps -- one for each month -- showing the positions of the constellations viewed from every direction a synoptic table that shows how to choose the proper map for use at any time special tables that give approximate positions of the planets for the years 1992 through 1997 the most up-to-date overview of the solar system available today the latest facts about each of the planets -- orbit, size, atmosphere, internal structure, climate, and terrain a full chapter on the history and development of the constellations, and the ancient legends and mythological lore surrounding them a special section on meteors -- how they originate and when and where to spot them. Initially published in 1942 and now celebrating its 50th anniversary, Star Maps for Beginners has sold more than 450,000 copies.
The Moon is not just a static piece of cosmic matter in our night
sky, but a dynamic living being. Throughout her journey around the
Earth which takes about 29.5 days she shows us her different faces,
growing from a silver sliver in the sky to an awe-inspiring
illuminated sphere, before returning to darkness again. She changes
colour and moves through a variety of star constellations
reflecting the energies at play each day. The Moon gives us a map
to a cyclical way of living; the blueprint for a life that breathes
in harmony with the rhythm of the natural world around us. She
teaches us about the importance of embracing quiet and reflective
times as much as celebrating the times we experience life in its
fullest expression. She informs us when to plant the seeds of our
dreams and when to take stock and harvest what we have been
growing. What will you discover about yourself when you tune into
the moon?
Amateur astronomers of all expertise from beginner to experienced
will find this a thorough star cluster atlas perfect for easy use
at the telescope or through binoculars. It enables practical
observers to locate the approximate positions of objects in the
sky, organized by constellation. This book was specifically
designed as an atlas and written for easy use in field conditions.
The maps are in black-and-white so that they can be read by the
light of a red LED observer's reading light. The clusters and their
names/numbers are printed in bold black, against a "grayed-out"
background of stars and constellation figures. To be used as a
self-contained reference, the book provides the reader with
detailed and up-to-date coverage of objects visible with small-,
medium-, and large-aperture telescopes, and is equally useful for
simple and computer-controlled telescopes. In practice, GO-TO
telescopes can usually locate clusters accurately enough to be seen
in a low-magnification eyepiece, but this of course first requires
that the observer knows what is visible in the sky at a given time
and from a given location, so as to input a locatable object. This
is where "The Observer's Guide to Star Clusters" steps in as an
essential aid to finding star clusters to observe and an essential
piece of equipment for all amateur astronomers.
As interest in astrology continues to grow, so too have the sales
of this accurate working tool. Raphael's Ephemeris continues to
fill the astrologer's everyday need for pocket reference and is
used extensively by professionals and students alike. The Ephemeris
is widely recognised in its classic livery and should be displayed
by general bookshops, specialised New Age shops and, of course, in
every astrology outlet. Longitudes of all the planets for every day
of the year. Tables of Houses for London, Liverpool and New York.
Complete Lunar and Planetary Aspectarian together with all the
necessary data for casting horoscopes North and South of the
Equator.
Raphael's Astronomical Ephemeris has been published every year for
well over 100 years. Renowned for its accuracy, it is respected the
world over as the number one portable planetary guide and
aspectarian.
Modern telescopes of even modest aperture can show thousands of
double stars. Many are faint and unremarkable but hundreds are
worth searching out. Veteran double-star observer Bob Argyle and
his co-authors take a close-up look at their selection of 175 of
the night sky's most interesting double and multiple stars. The
history of each system is laid out from the original discovery to
what we know at the present time about the stars. Wide-field finder
charts are presented for each system along with plots of the
apparent orbits and predicted future positions for the orbital
systems. Recent measurements of each system are included which will
help you to decide whether they can be seen in your telescope, as
well as giving advice on the aperture needed. Double star observers
of all levels of experience will treasure the level of detail in
this guide to these jewels of the night sky.
Are we alone in the universe? If not, where is everybody? An
engaging exploration of one of the most important unsolved problems
in science. Everything we know about how planets form and how life
arises suggests that human civilization on Earth should not be
unique. We ought to see abundant evidence of extraterrestrial
activity-but we don't. Where is everybody? In this volume in the
MIT Press Essential Knowledge series, science and technology writer
Wade Roush examines one of the great unsolved problems in science:
is there life, intelligent or otherwise, on other planets? This
paradox (they're bound to be out there; but where are they?), first
formulated by the famed physicist Enrico Fermi, has fueled decades
of debate, speculation, and, lately, some actual science. Roush
lays out the problem in its historical and modern-day context and
summarizes the latest thinking among astronomers and
astrobiologists. He describes the long history of speculation about
aliens (we've been debating the idea for thousands of years); the
emergence of SETI (the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) as
a scientific discipline in the 1960s, and scientists' use of radio
and optical techniques to scan for signals; and developments in
astrobiology (the study of how life might arise in non-Earth like
environments) and exoplanet research (the discovery of planets
outside our solar system). Finally, he discusses possible solutions
to the Fermi Paradox and suggests way to refocus SETI work that
might increase the chances of resolving the paradox-and finding
extraterrestrials.
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