• A guide to viewing stars, the moon, planets, meteors, comets, and aurora through binoculars
• Features a foreword by renowned astronomer and writer David Levy
• Includes a complete guide to current binocular brands and models and explains what to look for in each season

Many people assume that amateur stargazers must invest hundreds or even thousands of dollars in equipment before they can enjoy the wonders of the night sky. The truth is, though, that all you need is a simple pair of binoculars. This handy, easy-to-follow guide explains how to observe everything from the moon to meteor showers with binoculars and provides safety tips for viewing eclipses. It also includes separate sections for winter, spring, summer, and fall that give advice on what to look for and how to optimize your viewing. Ideal for budding astronomers of all ages, Binocular Stargazing is the perfect way to see the night sky through new eyes.

The compact and concise design of this guide to the Apollo missions belies its enormous content, with pertinent facts and color images for each mission--from Apollo 1 to Apollo 10. Providing an overall picture of the Apollo program, this guide includes sections on astronauts, mission patches, launch vehicles, command vehicles, landing vehicles, launch dates, mission objectives, flight plans, space suits, life support systems, and triumphs and failures. Both seasoned space buffs and young adults nurturing their interest in the space program will find this a perfect resource for the first 10 Apollo missions.

"The Pocket Space Guide[copyright]" concept is based around the idea of providing the space aficionado with a series of books covering the entire gamut of space exploration in a user friendly format. This is a standard paperback book at a reasonable price. It is ideal for gifts for children who are interested in space. It is useful for space enthusiasts, or as a gift for that person in your family who is involved in astronautics and aviation. It is compiled with the co-operation of NASA from the extensive files of Apogee Books! Each title is 96 pages in length and features 48 pages of colour photographs. Each book is packed with relevant pictures and data for each subject, such as crew photographs for each mission, crew patches, flight statistics such as time in space, distance travelled, mission objectives and a host of the best pictures taken during each program/mission. This special display box comes complete with 6 copies of each title.

For as long as mankind has possessed a sense of wonder, astronomy has been practised in one form or another. It can be thought of as having graduated to the status of a true science at the point in history when it became forever separated from astrology. Clearly they were not of the same mould; astronomy was hard to do; astrology was merely hard to swallow. The next significant change came in the early 20th century. Men and women of science felt it was no longer sufficient to simply catalogue the visual characteristics of the stars and other heavenly bodies; the desire to understand their physical makeup, behaviour and creation gave us the study of astrophysics. As the name suggests, this is the physics of astronomical bodies and the space they inhabit. During the second half of the 20th century interest turned also to the other eight planets of our solar system, spawning several new disciplines relating to Planetology, the formation of the solar system, and the possibility of past or present extraterrestrial life. Every decade of the last century brought ever more numerous and fascinating discoveries. It was not until 1930 that Pluto, the ninth planet, was discovered.;Only as late as 1978 was it discovered that Pluto possessed a moon. And now, in late 2005, NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has given astronomers evidence that Pluto may have not one, but three moons. In recent decades much interest has also been given to the far reaches of the universe -- far stars; other galaxies, some old, some still forming; and even the earliest detectable galaxies of the universe, at the very limits of our ability to probe. Each field of space study requires its own special tools and its own expertise. The many programs that come loosely under the headings of astronomy and space exploration are as varied and rewarding as the fascinating discoveries that they have made. To the uninformed, the exploration of deep space may seem esoteric and unexciting, but in truth the wonder and the beauty of deep space outshine almost anything that Earth and man can offer. The time when people can go and explore deep space in person is still well into the future. Until then, we shall continue to do as we have done for the past 40 years, sending unmanned spacecraft and satellites as our proxies and ambassadors to the universe.;This book examines deep space exploration missions, past, present and future, and their results.

Space junkies and armchair astronauts are provided with comprehensive, handy references for a variety of space-related missions, vehicles, and concepts in this pocket-sized series. Compiled with the cooperation of NASA, each topic-specific reference features relevant statistics, photographs, and the stories behind each project. Books on manned missions include crew photographs, information on patches and equipment, and flight statistics such as time in space, distance traveled, and mission objectives. Photographs and statistics for launch vehicles, orbiters, probes, and experimental equipment are featured in each equipment-specific reference.
Every detail of the Apollo 11 mission, including flight statistics, mission objectives, equipment used, patches, and background information and photographs of the crew, is covered in this conveniently sized reference.

Fred Hoyle was one of the most widely acclaimed and colourful scientists of the twentieth century, a down-to-earth Yorkshireman who combined a brilliant scientific mind with a relish for communication and controversy. Best known for his steady-state theory of cosmology, he described a universe with both an infinite past and an infinite future. He coined the phrase 'big bang' to describe the main competing theory, and sustained a long-running, sometimes ill-tempered, and typically public debate with his scientific rivals. He showed how the elements are formed by nuclear reactions inside stars, and explained how we are therefore all formed from stardust. He also claimed that diseases fall from the sky, attacked Darwinism, and branded the famous fossil of the feathered Archaeopteryx a fake. Throughout his career, Hoyle played a major role in the popularization of science. Through his radio broadcasts and his highly successful science fiction novels he became a household name, though his outspokenness and support for increasingly outlandish causes later in life at times antagonized the scientific community. Jane Gregory builds up a vivid picture of Hoyle's role in the ideas, the organization, and the popularization of astronomy in post-war Britain, and provides a fascinating examination of the relationship between a maverick scientist, the scientific establishment, and the public. Through the life of Hoyle, this book chronicles the triumphs, jealousies, rewards, and feuds of a rapidly developing scientific field, in a narrative animated by a cast of colourful astronomers, keeping secrets, losing their tempers, and building their careers here on Earth while contemplating the nature of the stars.

Although the author's inquiries are still incomplete, he brought together some of the notes he had collected, as they may induce other inquirers to go on with the work. The reader must form his own judgment as to the direction in which the evidence tends. Lockyer believed the view that our ancient monuments were built to observe and mark the rising and setting places of the heavenly bodies is now fully established with the evidence.

This volume of star names is not intended for the professional astronomer, but as a reference to fill a vacancy in popular astronomical literature. It contains a sketch of the lunar and solar zodiacs which are constantly alluded to in the treating of individual constellations; as well as a detailed list of the constellations, their history among the nations, cataloging and early treatment by authors and their connection with astrology, art, folklore, literature and religion.

This book describes the exploration of two unique and dangerous environments, space and underwater, and how the paths of two men, one living and one dead, crossed in the recovery of the Liberty Bell 7 spacecraft. The book focuses on two periods, one beginning in 1959, the other in 1985, interweaving the stories of Project Mercury, Gus Grissom and his ill-fated Mercury flight, on-going developments in deep ocean exploration, and Curt Newport's 14 year obsession to raise the sunken space-age titanic from the depths of the Atlantic Ocean. Also told is how Newport's team, against staggering odds, managed to find the phone box sized space vehicle during this harrowing 1999 expedition, only to see their recovery vehicle and Liberty Bell 7 ripped from their grasp by the forces of nature. Newport later recovered Liberty Bell 7 during what remains the deepest commercial salvage operation in history, returning Grissom's craft to Cape Canaveral, thirty-eight years to the day after Grissom blasted off his tiny launch pad.;However, the prevalent theme running through this book is how simple luck almost rivals technical ability when exploring any deadly environment, whether it be the silent void of low-Earth orbit, or the crushing cold of the abyss. Includes a CD featuring the operational log for the recovery of the Liberty Bell and technical drawings.

An amazing journey from our moon to the most distant stars, revealing the magic and majesty of our universe.

'Fascinating new book examines the history of Nasa's Apollo space missions' Daily Mail _______ Eight key lessons to revolutionise your life with the mindset that got man to the moon. 20th July 1969: Neil Armstrong becomes the first person to walk on the Moon. We all recognize this to be one of mankind's greatest achievements. Yet what did it take to make John F. Kennedy's dream a reality? In this remarkable book, Professor Richard Wiseman presents a pioneering study of the mindset that took humanity to the Moon, and shows how you can harness and use it to achieve the extraordinary in your everyday life. Combining personal interviews, mission archives and cutting-edge psychology, Wiseman embarks on the ultimate voyage through inner space. Along the way he identifies eight key principles that make up the Apollo Mindset, including how pessimism is crucial to success, and how fear and tragedy can be transformed into hope and optimism. You will discover a series of practical techniques that you can use to incorporate these winning principles into both your professional and personal life. Whether you want to start a business venture, change careers, find your perfect partner, raise a loving family, get promoted, gain a new qualification, escape the rat race, or pursue a lifelong passion, these techniques will help you to reach your own Moon.

Full Moon is a photographic journey to the Moon and back, drawn from NASA's 32,000 pictures from the Apollo missions. For the first time NASA has allowed 900 of the 'master' negatives and transparencies to be taken offsite for electronic scanning so as to produce the sharpest images of space that we have ever seen. From this selection of 'master' photographs Michael Light has distilled a single composite journey beginning with the launch, followed by a walk in space, an orbit of the Moon, a lunar landing and exploration and a return to Earth with an orbit and splash-down. Five enormous gatefold panoramas show the extraordinary lunar landscape.

These photographs reveal not only the hardware of lunar exploration in exquisite detail but also the profound aesthetics of space in what could be described as the ultimate landscape photography. The reader is encouraged to view these pictures as more than a spectacle. You start to experience them with a sense of the accompanying disorientation and excitement that the astronauts themselves would have felt. The Moon's surface and its extraordinary light are presented with awesome clarity. Full Moon was originally published in 1999 to mark the 30th anniversary of the first landing on the Moon. It was a milestone publication for the millennium, greeted with acclaim worldwide and published in eight countries.

This new compact edition preserves all the superb quality of reproduction which was so evident in the original and makes this extraordinary work available to a still wider audience.

Skywatchers of Ancient Mexico helped establish the field of archaeoastronomy, and it remains the standard introduction to this subject. Combining basic astronomy with archaeological and ethnological data, it presented a readable and entertaining synthesis of all that was known of ancient astronomy in the western hemisphere as of 1980.

In this revised edition, Anthony Aveni draws on his own and others' discoveries of the past twenty years to bring the Skywatchers story up to the present. He offers new data and interpretations in many areas, including:
-- The study of Mesoamerican time and calendrical systems and their unprecedented continuity in contemporary Mesoamerican culture
-- The connections between Precolumbian religion, astrology, and scientific, quantitative astronomy
-- The relationship between Highland Mexico and the world of the Maya and the state of Pan-American scientific practices
-- The use of personal computer software for computing astronomical data

With this updated information, Skywatchers will serve a new generation of general and scholarly readers and will be useful in courses on archaeoastronomy, astronomy, history of astronomy, history of science, anthropology, archaeology, and world religions.

Winner of several teaching awards, including National Professor of the Year from the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education, Anthony F. Aveni is the Russell B. Colgate Professor of Astronomy and Anthropology at Colgate University in upstate New York.

This compelling story of exploration charts and celebrates humankind in space, from Sputnik's launch in 1957 through the Apollo Moon landings and the International Space Station to future missions to Mars and beyond. Spaceflight chronicles how, in the six decades that followed Sputnik, the world was revolutionized by space travel and exploration. The opening up of Earth's orbit to satellites led to a revolution in communications, monitoring of the environment, and materials science. For the human imagination, the impact has been even greater - the voyages of robotic space probes have transformed our view of the Solar System, while Earth-orbiting satellites and missions to the Moon have forever changed our view of ourselves. This book is a celebration of human ingenuity and imagination. From the work of pioneers like Wernher von Braun, Yuri Gagarin, and Neil Armstrong to the triumphs and tragedies that followed, it reveals the people, science, and technology that have propelled us into the Space Age.

An epic story of the emergence of the universe and of the community of life, with a new vision for how we might bring forth a vibrant Earth Community Today we know what no previous generation knew: the history of the universe and of the unfolding of life on Earth. Through the astonishing combined achievements of natural scientists worldwide, we now have a detailed account of how galaxies and stars, planets and living organisms, human beings and human consciousness came to be. And yet . . . we thirst for answers to questions that have haunted humanity from the very beginning. What is our place in the 14-billion-year history of the universe? What roles do we play in Earth's history? How do we connect with the intricate web of life on Earth? In Journey of the Universe Brian Thomas Swimme and Mary Evelyn Tucker tell the epic story of the universe from an inspired new perspective, weaving the findings of modern science together with enduring wisdom found in the humanistic traditions of the West, China, India, and indigenous peoples. The authors explore cosmic evolution as a profoundly wondrous process based on creativity, connection, and interdependence, and they envision an unprecedented opportunity for the world's people to address the daunting ecological and social challenges of our times. Journey of the Universe transforms how we understand our origins and envision our future. Though a little book, it tells a big story-one that inspires hope for a way in which Earth and its human civilizations could flourish together. This book is part of a larger project that includes a documentary film, an educational DVD series, and a website. For more information, please consult the website, journeyoftheuniverse.org.

"A highly readable survey of the historical prelude to the study of the origins of life, as well as selected areas of current research, including the search for extraterrestrial life."-NatureWhere did we come from? Did life arise on earth or on some other planet? What did the earliest primitive organisms look like? Untangling a century of contentious debate, the authors explore current theories of the source of life-from Martian meteors to hydrothermal vents-and then present their own elegant scenario: Life arose not in the subterranean depths, as many believe, but on Earth's tumultuous surface, where a primitive form of natural selection spawned the first genetic material, perhaps in the form of a proto-virus. Knowing exactly how life began on Earth will not only teach us more about ourselves, it will bring us closer to finding life elsewhere.

Developed by one of the foremost designers of astonomical maps, The Cambridge Star Atlas offers an unusual degree of breadth and detail for amateur and experienced astronomers. Northern and southern latitudes are included in a series of monthly sky charts and an atlas of the whole sky. Each of the 20 overlapping full color charts shows stars down to magnitude 6.5, together with about 900 nonstellar objects, such as clusters and galaxies, which can be seen with binoculars or a small telescope. This new edition features 52 color maps, improved versions of all the charts, and a thorough revision of the text and star data based on the latest information. In addition, there is a comprehensive double page map of the Moon's surface, which shows craters and other named features. Clear, authoritative, and easy-to-use, The Cambridge Star Atlas is an ideal reference for sky watchers everywhere, throughout the year. Wil Tirion began his first star atlas as a hobby, mapping the whole sky on five maps. It was published in the Encyclopedia of Astronomy and soon after was released as a separate set of maps by the British Astronomical Association. In 1983, Tirion began working as a full-time uranographer, or sky cartographer. Since then, he has contributed to many books and magazines on astronomy. He lives in the Netherlands.

An encapsulation in nine numbers of all that modern astronomy has learnt about the universe. These cosmic numbers appear to be independent characteristics of our universe and include its age, the Hubble constant (a measure of its rate of expression), and the density of matter in the universe. Only one of the nine numbers is known with real precision, and four of them only poorly known. Difficult ideas like the origin of the elements, the General Theory of Relativity, quantum theory, and the standard model of particle physics, ideas which underpin modern cosmology, are explained in a simple way. While most of what we know has been learnt during the 20th century, Rowan-Robinson provides a historical perspective, paying homage to the achievements of the Greeks, Renaissance astronomers, and the age of Newton. The book ends with predictions of when all nine numbers will be accurately known.

Gateway to the Moon presents the definitive history of the origins, design, and construction of the lunar launch facilities at Kennedy Space Center, the terrestrial site of one of the greatest national adventures of the 20th century, humanity's first trip to the moon. It includes archival illustrations and diagrams of locations, personnel, and equipment, from aerial views of sandy, undeveloped Cape Canaveral to some of the first photos of the mobile launchers and crawler-transporters.

Filled with the sense of wonder and pride that the earliest U.S. space achievements inspired, the book focuses on launch complexes 39A and 39B, the gigantic assemblies from which the Apollo-Saturn vehicles departed for trips into space, and on the massive eight-acre Vertical Assembly Building (renamed the Vehicle Assembly Building) and the attached Launch Control Center -- some of the most awesome buildings ever constructed. It also analyzes the technological and governmental interactions necessary to ensure success of the launches.

Originally part of Moonport, a 1978 volume in the NASA History Series, the book is based on extensive interviews with wit participants in the space program and wide access to official documents, letters, and memoranda; in addition, the authors air criticisms directed at the Kennedy Space Center team and treat in detail mistakes in launch operations and conflicts within the program. Written for a general-interest audience, with jargon and acronyms translated into everyday language, the book offers a faithful account of technology in service to humanity.

Have you ever wondered what happened before the Big Bang, or how we would colonize Mars, or what an alien invasion might really be like? Astronomer Bob Berman has, and in Cosmic Adventure, a collection of twenty-six profound to outrageous essays, he takes readers on a mind-bending tour of the universe, including our own planet Earth. From the most extraordinary cosmic phenomena to the basics of the natural world, Berman challenges us to look at the facts, discoveries, concepts, and awesome wonders of our cosmos in a new light. Written in entertaining, jargon-free language that even a novice stargazer will understand, Cosmic Adventure is a fun-filled, thought-provoking exploration of the secrets beyond the night sky.

Cosmic Adventure explains aspects of the physical world that have often piqued our curiosity. Who gets to name the stars? What would an alien invasion really be like? What's the inside story behind space program disasters? Why was the early Hubble goof avoidable? What's the only original idea in recent science? Why does time probably not exist at all?

This work is an account of one of the most thrilling topics in science - the search for life on Mars - and how it may ultimately lead us to the origins of life in the universe. Hidden beneath the sterile surface of Earth's neighbouring planet may be the keys to unlocking the origins of life in the universe. An expert on extreme-life environments, Malcolm Walter argues that the best place to find evidence of life on Mars is in the rocks and subsurface water of the Red Planet - out of reach of telescopes and space probes. In this book, Walter unveils his dramatic plan - already adopted by NASA - for finding these elusive traces of life.

Donna Shirley's 35-year career as an aerospace engineer reached a jubilant pinnacle in July 1997 when Sojourner--the solar-powered, self-guided, microwave-oven-sized rover--was seen exploring the Martian landscape in Pathfinder's spectacular images from the surface of the red planet. The event marked a milestone in space, but for Donna Shirley, the leader of the mostly male team that designed and built Sojourner--and the first woman ever to manage a NASA program--it marked a triumph of another kind.

Managing Martians is Shirley's captivating memoir of a life and career spent reaching for the stars. From her seemingly outlandish aspiration at age ten to build aircraft, to abandoning high school Home Ec in favor of mechanical drawing, and, at sixteen, becoming a licensed pilot, Shirley defied expectations from the beginning. In a vivid narrative, rich with anecdotes and thrilling turning points, Shirley recounts the intense battles she waged to defend her vision and the ingenuity and resourcefulness of her committed team. Her moment-by-cliffhanging-moment account of Pathfinder's landing and Sojourner's first tentative foray across the sands of Mars brilliantly captures the fulfillment of a lifelong dream as it heralds a brave new era of space exploration.

Sixty-five million years ago, a gigantic asteroid collided with Earth. The resulting dust clouds and fire storm blotted out the sunlight, destroying much of the animal, plant, and fish life - most notably, the dinosaurs. What would happen if another giant asteroid found itself on a collision course with Earth? Doomsday Asteroid: Can We Survive? is the most comprehensive current book for general readers to address the threats and potential benefits of asteroids. Space experts Donald W. Cox and James H. Chestek explain the major differences between comets and asteroids and describe what might happen should the Earth suffer a collision with either one of them. Cox and Chestek present a view quite different from that of astronomers: In particular, they cover the Earth defense problem in more detail than any of the other popular works on asteroids and they are critical of the science/astronomical community and its approach to asteroid danger. They also call for establishment of an International Spaceguard Command to oversee planetary safety.

On October 1, 1958, the world's first civilian space agency opened for business as an emergency response to the Soviet Union's launch of Sputnik a year earlier. Within a decade, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, universally known as NASA, had evolved from modest research teams experimenting with small converted rockets into one of the greatest technological and managerial enterprises ever known, capable of sending people to the Moon aboard gigantic rockets and of dispatching robot explorers to Venus, Mars, and worlds far beyond. In spite of occasional, tragic setbacks in NASA's history, the Apollo lunar landing project remains a byword for American ingenuity; the winged space shuttles spearheaded the International Space Station and a dazzling array of astronomical satellites and robotic landers, and Earth observation programs have transformed our understanding of the cosmos and our home world's fragile place within it. Throughout NASA's 60-year history, images have played a central role. Who today is not familiar with the Hubble Space Telescope's mesmerizing views of the universe or the pin-sharp panoramas of Mars from NASA's surface rovers? And who could forget the photographs of the first men walking on the Moon? Researched with the collaboration of NASA, this collection gathers more than 400 historic photographs and rare concept renderings, scanned and remastered using the latest technology and reproduced in extra-large size. Texts by science and technology journalist Piers Bizony, former NASA chief historian Roger Launius, and best-selling Apollo historian Andrew Chaikin-and an extensive mission checklist documenting the key human and robotic missions-round out this comprehensive exploration of NASA, from its earliest days to its current development of new space systems for the future. The NASA Archives is more than just a fascinating pictorial history of the U.S. space program. It is also a profound meditation on why we choose to explore space and how we will carry on this grandest of all adventures in the years to come.

"Tony Aveni has written a marvelous book about how the celestial rhythms influenced the cultures of the past. . . . It makes fascinating reading for any layperson."—Science Books and Films

"Clearly, if we can know more about these people, their religion, their culture, their hopes and dreams, according to Dr. Aveni, it will make our understanding of their astronomy more meaningful."—Planetarian

"A thoughtful analysis . . . highly recommended."—Library Journal

What was the meaning of Stonehenge? What was the Mayan Code? Why was the elaborate Incan city of Cuzco built? Groundbreaking archaeoastronomer Anthony Aveni offers a host of startling new insights and conclusions in this acclaimed study of three of life's most mesmerizing mysteries.