'A promising debut.' New Scientist Icy, rocky, sometimes dusty, always mysterious - comets and asteroids are among the Solar System's very oldest inhabitants, formed within a swirling cloud of gas and dust in the area of space that eventually hosted the Sun and its planets. Locked within each of these extra-terrestrial objects is the 4.6-billion-year wisdom of Solar System events, and by studying them at close quarters using spacecraft we can coerce them into revealing their closely-guarded secrets. This offers us the chance to answer some fundamental questions about our planet and its inhabitants. Exploring comets and asteroids also allows us to shape the story of Earth's future, enabling us to protect our precious planet from the threat of a catastrophic impact from space, and maybe to even recover valuable raw materials from them. This cosmic bounty could be as useful in space as it is on Earth, providing the necessary fuel and supplies for humans as they voyage into deep space to explore more distant locations within the Solar System. Catching Stardust tells the story of these enigmatic celestial objects, revealing how scientists are using them to help understand a crucial time in our history - the birth of the Solar System, and everything contained within it.

In this enthralling cosmic journey through space and time, astrophysicist Jillian Scudder locates our home planet within its own 'family tree'. Our parent the Earth and its sibling planets in our solar system formed within the same gas cloud. Without our grandparent the Sun, we would not exist, and the Sun in turn relies on the Milky Way as its home. The Milky Way rests in a larger web of galaxies that traces its origins right back to tiny fluctuations in the very early universe. Following these cosmic connections, we discover the many ties that bind us to our universe. Based around readers' questions from the author's popular blog 'Astroquizzical', the book provides a quirky guide to how things work in the universe and why things are the way they are, from shooting stars on Earth, to black holes, to entire galaxies. For anyone interested in the 'big picture' of how the cosmos functions and how it is all connected, Jillian Scudder is the perfect guide.

This book is for amateur astronomers who would like to know the mythology behind the names of astronomical objects in the night sky. It covers the lore and legend behind Ptolemy's 48 constellations, along with significant asterisms, the planets and their moons, the brightest named asteroids and dwarf planets. The revised second edition includes a host of new moons and dwarf planets discovered since 2011. In addition, it now features a new section on major asteroids and their associated myths. While still primarily focused on Greco-Roman mythology, the book now branches out to cover more recently named objects from other cultures, such as Hawaiian, Rapanui, Tongva and Inuit. To assist practical observers, the book gives the location and description of each constellation, including named stars and deep-sky objects. A host of helpful astronomy tips and techniques, as well as a brief introduction to astrophotography, are included to encourage direct observation and imaging of these mythical objects in the night sky.

On October 4, 1957, the day Leave It to Beaver premiered on American television, the Soviet Union launched the space age. Sputnik, all of 184 pounds with only a radio transmitter inside its highly polished shell, became the first artificial satellite in space; while it immediately shocked the world, its long-term impact was even greater, for it profoundly changed the shape of the twentieth century. Paul Dickson chronicles the dramatic events and developments leading up to and resulting from Sputnik's launch. Supported by groundbreaking, original research and many declassified documents, Sputnik offers a fascinating profile of the early American and Soviet space programs and a strikingly revised picture of the politics and personalities behind the facade of America's fledgling efforts to get into space. The U.S. public reaction to Sputnik was monumental. In a single weekend, Americans were wrenched out of a mood of national smugness and postwar material comfort. Initial shock at and fear of the Soviets' intentions galvanized the country and swiftly prompted innovative developments that define our world today. Sputnik directly or indirectly influenced nearly every aspect of American life: from an immediate shift toward science in the classroom to the arms race that defined the Cold War, the competition to reach the moon, and the birth of the internet. By shedding new light on a pivotal era, Dickson expands our knowledge of the world we now inhabit and reminds us that the story of Sputnik goes far beyond technology and the beginning of the space age, and that its implications are still being felt today.

How to predict and calculate the positions of stars, planets, the sun, the moon, and satellites using a personal computer and high school mathematics. Our knowledge of the universe is expanding rapidly, as space probes launched decades ago begin to send information back to earth. There has never been a better time to learn about how planets, stars, and satellites move through the heavens. This book is for amateur astronomers who want to move beyond pictures of constellations in star guides and solve the mysteries of a starry night. It is a book for readers who have wondered, for example, where Saturn will appear in the night sky, when the sun will rise and set, or how long the space station will be over their location. In Celestial Calculations, J. L. Lawrence shows readers how to find the answers to these and other astronomy questions with only a personal computer and high school math. Using an easy-to-follow step-by-step approach, Lawrence explains what calculations are required, why they are needed, and how they all fit together. Lawrence begins with basic principles: unit of measure conversions, time conversions, and coordinate systems. He combines these concepts into a computer program that can calculate the location of a star, and uses the same methods for predicting the locations of the sun, moon, and planets. He then shows how to use these methods for locating the many satellites we have sent into orbit. Finally, he describes a variety of resources and tools available to the amateur astronomer, including star charts and astronomical tables. Diagrams illustrate the major concepts, and computer programs that implement the algorithms are included. Photographs of actual celestial objects accompany the text, and interesting astronomical facts are interspersed throughout. Source code (in Python 3, JAVA, and Visual Basic) and executables for all the programs and examples presented in the book are available for download at https://CelestialCalculations.github.io.

From the winner of the 2022 Royal Society Science Book Prize, a thrilling and thought-provoking account of the rise and fall of humankind.

For the first time in over ten millennia, the rate of human population growth is slowing down. The global population is forecast to begin declining in the second half of this century, and in 10,000 years’ time, our species will likely be extinct.

In The Decline and Fall of the Human Empire, Henry Gee shows how we arrived at this crucial moment in our history, beginning his story deep in the palaeolithic past and charting our dramatic rise from one species of human among many – teetering on the edge of extinction for more than a hundred millennia – to the most dominant animal to ever live on Earth.

But rapid climate change, a stagnating global economy, falling birth rates and an unexplainable decline in average human sperm count are combining to make our chances for longevity increasingly slim. There could be a way forward, but the launch window is narrow.

Gee argues that unless Homo sapiens establishes successful colonies in space within the next two centuries, our species is likely to stay earthbound and will have vanished entirely within another 10,000 years, bringing the seven-million-year story of the human lineage to an end.

Drawing on a dazzling array of the latest scientific research, Gee tells the extraordinary story of humanity with characteristic warmth and wit, and suggests how our exceptional species might avoid its tragic fate.

110 times wider than Earth; 15 million degrees at its core; an atmosphere so huge that Earth is actually within it: come and meet the star of our solar system Light takes eight minutes to reach Earth from the surface of the Sun. But its journey within the Sun takes hundreds of thousands of years. What is going on in there? What are light and heat? How does the Sun produce them and how on earth did scientists discover this? In this astonishing and enlightening adventure, you'll travel millions of miles from inside the Sun to its surface and to Earth, where the light at the end of its journey is allowing you to read right now. You'll discover how the Sun works (including what it sounds like), the latest research in solar physics and how a solar storm could threaten everything we know. And you'll meet the groundbreaking scientists, including the author, who pieced this extraordinary story together.

Professor Stephen Hawking is generally considered to have been one of the world's greatest thinkers. Here, his phenomenal bestseller A Brief History of Time is illustrated to bring his theories to life in a clear, captivating and visually engaging way. 'This book marries a child's wonder to a genius's intellect. We journey into Hawking's universe, while marvelling at his mind' - The Sunday Times 'Stephen Hawking can explain the complexities of cosmological physics with an engaging combination of clarity and wit...' - Observer 'Exceptional writing explaining the mysteries and beauty of our universe. The book is very fascinating and highly enjoyable. Highly recommended' - ***** Reader review 'This book is mind blowing' - ***** Reader review 'A masterpiece' - ***** Reader review ******************************************************************************************** Was there a beginning of time? Could time run backwards? Is the universe infinite or does it have boundaries? These are just some of the questions considered in the internationally acclaimed masterpiece by the world-renowned physicist Professor Stephen Hawking. It begins by reviewing the great theories of the cosmos from Newton to Einstein, before delving into the secrets which still lie at the heart of space and time, from the Big Bang to black holes, via spiral galaxies and strong theory. To this day A Brief History of Time remains a staple of the scientific canon, and its succinct and clear language continues to introduce millions to the universe and its wonders. In this edition, Professor Hawking explains his complex theories through a fresh visual dimension. Over 150 stunning colour illustrations have been specially commissioned for this purpose to help the reader understand what have become popular mythic images of our century, but which nonetheless remain difficult, abstract ideas to grasp. This stunning gift edition also includes a new appendix with updates to the text and tributes to Stephen Hawking.

The Moon is accessible to everyone. Because it is easy to observe everywhere, even in big cities, it is a prime target for aspiring astronomers and for those who are merely curious about the night sky. This easy-to-use guide to discovering lunar sites takes the reader through fourteen observing sessions from New Moon to Full Moon. For each evening, the book shows which craters, mountains and other features can be seen, and how to find them. Each photograph shows what the observer actually sees through a telescope, solving the usual difficulties of orientation confronting beginners. Images are shown as they appear through both refracting and reflecting telescopes. Maps printed on the book's front and back flaps show the whole Moon with sites as seen through a refractor, through a Newtonian reflector, or, when turned upside-down, through binoculars. Jean Lacroux has been a columnist for the French astronomy magazine Ciel et Espace for 25 years. He has published four successful amateur astronomy books in French. Christian Legrand is an engineer and amateur astronomer, who has been a passionate lunar observer since the Apollo missions.

Conceived as three companion volumes that form an introduction to the central ideas of the modern natural sciences, these books--intelligent, informative, and accessible--are an excellent source for those who have no technical knowledge of the subject.
Praise for "The Fabric of the Heavens":
"I cannot remember when I last went through a book, any book, with such all-devouring zest. What is more, even the most complex technicalities are reduced to a positively crystalline clarity: If I can understand them, anyone can. "The Fabric of the Heavens" is, in every sense of the word, an eye-opener."--Peter Green, "The Yorkshire Post"
"Not until the last chapter of the book is [the reader] allowed to think again wholly as a modern man has become accustomed, by common sense, to think. The discipline is admirably suited to the authors' task, and cunningly devised for the reader's edification--and, indeed, for his delight."--"Physics Today"
Praise for "The Architecture of Matter":
""The Architecture of Matter" is to be warmly recommended. It is that rare achievement, a lively book which at the same time takes the fullest possible advantage of scholarly knowledge."--Charles C. Gillespie, "New York Times Book Review"
"One is impressed by the felicity of the examples and by the lively clarity with which significant experiments and ideas are explained. . . . No other history of science is so consistently challenging."--"Scientific American"
Praise for "The Discovery of Time":
"A subject of absorbing interest . . . is presented not as a history of science, but as a chapter in the history of ideas from the ancient Greeks to our own time."--"Times Literary Supplement"

*As featured on BBC Breakfast, Radio 5Live and Steve Wright in the Afternoon on BBC Radio 2* From the Nasa astronaut who spent a record-breaking year aboard the International Space Station - what it's like out there and what it's like now, back here. Enter Scott Kelly's fascinating world and dare to think of your own a little differently. As soon as you realize you aren't going to die, space is the most fun you'll ever have... The veteran of four space flights and the American record holder for most consecutive days spent in space, Scott Kelly has experienced things very few of us ever have and very few of us ever will. Kelly's humanity, compassion, humour, and passion shine as he describes navigating the extreme challenge of long-term spaceflight, both existential and banal. He touches on what's happened to his body, the sadness of being isolated from everyone he loves; the pressures of constant close cohabitation; the catastrophic risks of colliding with space junk, and the still more haunting threat of being absent should tragedy strike at home. From a natural storyteller Endurance is one of the finest examples the triumph of the human imagination, the strength of the human will, and the boundless wonder of the galaxy. * What readers are saying... 'Takes you up into space and lets you be a part of astronaut life' 'Tough to put down! Tells a side you don't often hear or read about for that matter' 'Mind blowing . . . up there with Ernest Shackleton for me' 'My husband said it is the next best thing to going into space yourself' 'Six stars!'

In this clearly written work, Robert Wald provides the general reader with an elementary but scientifically sound introduction to such fascinating topics as the theory of the big-bang origin of the universe and the nature of black holes. Wald has now revised and updated the highly regarded first edition of Space, Time, and Gravity, taking into account recent developments in black hole physics, astrophysics, and cosmology.

"An enjoyable, informative look at what living and working in space will really be like in the decades to come. Harrison explores the often unappreciated interaction of human psyche and technology in an environment filled with danger, challenge, and opportunity. A great read for space professionals or anyone interested in the future of our species as we expand into the 'final frontier.'"--Patricia Santy, former NASA Flight Surgeon and author of "Choosing the Right Stuff: The Psychological Selection of Astronauts

""Spacefaring addresses in a powerful, cogent, and scholarly manner topics long ignored or swept aside in official reports and planning documents about space flight. It is a good, powerful and needed work."--Edgar Mitchell, Astronaut, Apollo 14

"Drawing on both recent developments and classic 'space lore, ' Harrison takes his readers on refreshingly human-level odyssey through the still-widely-unknown challenges and opportunities that await us in a future off of our home planet."--James Oberg, author of "Red Star in Orbit

"A roadmap to the future for teachers preparing students to live and work in space."--Don Scott, NASA Educator

"As a leading psychologist dealing with the human side of spaceflight, the author brings unique, somewhat philosophical, insights into the offworld experience of our species. This book is especially valuable to aerospace engineers and planners concerned with long-duration spaceflight and colonization. A seminal volume, it offers behavioral science perspectives on the challenge of creating a spacefaring civilization for the New Millennium."--Philip R. Harris, author of "Living and Working in Space

"We are becoming a spacefaring species. Spacestations have become commonplace and space tourism, the exploration of Mars and the first settlements in space are next. If these work, the sky's no limit. Harrison engagingly tells the human side of this unfolding adventure, providing us with a book ideal for courses in Humanity in Space and of interest to any reader who wants to know what we (and not just our machines) must do to flourish beyond the earth. "--Ben Finney, Chair, Space and Society Department, International Space University

"Well-written, covers a range of reserach and makes several interesting points on almost every page."--Gerald Cecil, "American Scientist

"An intelligent, challenging book...ideal for those with an interest in space travel and a desire to explore the cutting edge."--David Pitt, "Booklist

"Marvelous reading...will be invaluable to aerospace engineers and future space travelers."--Cliff Pickover, "Leonardo Digital Reviews

"An informed and upbeat appraisal of the human dimension of spaceflight, coupled with a cautious and wistful rumination on its prospects."--Alex Roland, "Issues in Science and Technology

"The vast majority of space books focus on the hardware for getting there, and the environment, or lack thereof, that surrounds you. In contrast, Harrison focuses on the human dimension....The book is by far the most comprehensive resource to date on the human factors of space flight."--"Netsurfer Digest

How to Use a Computerized Telescope describes how to get a computerized telescope up-and-running, and how to embark on a program of observation. Michael Covington explains in detail how the sky moves, how a telescope tracks it, and how to get the most out of any computerized telescope. Packed full of practical advice and tips for troubleshooting, his book gives detailed instructions for three popular telescopes: the Meade® LX200, Celestron^DCC NexStar 5 and 8, and Meade® Autostar^DTM (ETX and LX90). Michael A. Covington is an associate research scientist at the University of Georgia. He is a computational linguist trained in the computer processing of human language and the computer modeling of human logical reasoning, and a widely recognized expert on the Prolog programming language. He is the author of nine books including Dictionary of Computer and Internet Terms, Seventh Edition (Barron's, 2000), Astrophotography for the Amateur (Cambridge, 1999), PROLOG Programming in Depth (Simon & Schuster, 1996), Cambridge Eclipse Photography Guide (1993), and Syntactic Theory in the High Middle Ages (Cambridge, 1985). A senior member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Covington is a Contributing Editor to, and former "Q&A" columnist of, Poptronics magazine.

'Masterly' New York Times 'Riveting' Scott Kelly 'Remarkable' The Times When Richard Branson founded Virgin Galactic in 2004, his goal was simple: to offer paying customers a trip to space by the end of the decade. Seventeen years, countless delays, and one catastrophic crash later, his space tourism dream may finally be on the verge of reality. Now, a New Yorker journalist offers the definitive portrait of the adventurers leading the way to the stars. Drawing on hundreds of hours of interviews with Virgin's lead test pilot, Mark Stucky, Test Gods describes the making of a modern astronaut: from starry-eyed youth to NASA, the Air Force, and Virgin Galactic; and through dozens of gruelling test flights to his first successful trip beyond the earth's atmosphere. The result is the most vivid exploration of an astronaut's inner life since Tom Wolfe's The Right Stuff. It offers an intimate and unique insight into the new space race.

One of the great paradoxes of modern times is that the more scientists understand the natural world, the more we discover that our everyday beliefs about it are wrong. Astronomy, in particular, is one of the most misunderstood scientific disciplines.

With the participation of thousands of undergraduate students, Neil F. Comins has identified and classified, by origin and topic, over 1,700 commonly held misconceptions. "Heavenly Errors" provides access to all of them and explores many, including:

- Black holes suck in everything around them.

- The Sun shines by burning gas.

- Comets have tails trailing behind them.

- The Moon alone causes tides.

- Mercury, the closest planet to the Sun, is the hottest planet.

In the course of correcting these errors, he explains that some occur through the prevalence of pseudosciences such as astrology and UFO-logy and some enter the public conscience through the "bad astronomy" of "Star Trek, Star Wars, " and other science-fiction movies.. Perhaps most important, Professor Comins presents the reader with the methods for identifying and replacing incorrect ideas -- tools with which to probe erroneous notions so that we can begin to question for ourselves... and to think more like scientists.

As a new wave of interplanetary exploration unfolds, a talented young planetary scientist charts our centuries-old obsession with Mars. 'Beautifully written, emotive - a love letter to a planet' DERMOT O'LEARY, BBC Radio 2 Mars - bewilderingly empty, coated in red dust - is an unlikely place to pin our hopes of finding life elsewhere. And yet, right now multiple spacecraft are circling, sweeping over Terra Sabaea, Syrtis Major, the dunes of Elysium and Mare Sirenum - on the brink, perhaps, of a discovery that would inspire humankind as much as any in our history. With poetic precision and grace, Sarah Stewart Johnson traces the evocative history of our explorations of Mars. She interlaces her personal journey as a scientist with tales of other seekers - from Galileo to William Herschel to Carl Sagan - who have scoured this enigmatic planet for signs of life and transformed it in our understanding from a distant point of light into a complex world. Ultimately, she shows how its story is also a story about Earth: it is a foil, a mirror, a tell-tale reflection of our own anxieties and yearnings to find - if we're lucky - that we're not alone. 'Elegantly written and boundlessly entertaining' Sunday Telegraph 'Beguiling' The Times 'Johnson's prose swirls with lyrical wonder, as varied and multi-hued as the apricot deserts, butterscotch skies and blue sunsets of Mars' Anthony Doerr, New York Times Book Review 'Elegantly crafted' Lord Martin Rees, Astronomer Royal

Apollo 15 command module pilot Al Worden was one of the highest-profile personalities among the Apollo astronauts, renowned for his outspokenness and potent views but also recognized as a warm and well-liked person who devoted much of his life after retiring from NASA to sharing his spaceflight experiences. Worden had nearly finished writing this book before his passing in 2020 at the age of eighty-eight. Coauthored with spaceflight historian Francis French, The Light of Earth is Worden's wide-ranging look at the greatest-ever scientific undertaking, in which he was privileged to be a leading participant. Here Worden gives readers his refreshingly candid opinions on the space program, flying to the moon, and the people involved in the Apollo and later shuttle programs, as well as sharing hard-hitting reflections on the space shuttle program, the agonies and extraordinary sights and delights of being a NASA Apollo astronaut, and the space program's triumphs and failures. Worden delves into areas of personal grief that reveal the noble and truly human side of the space program's earliest years. He does not hold back when discussing the shocking deaths of his fellow astronauts in the three major tragedies that struck the space agency, nor does he shy away from sharing his personal feelings about fellow Apollo astronauts including Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin. Worden was known as a charismatic speaker and one of the most thoughtful Apollo astronauts. His candid, entertaining, and unique perspective in The Light of Earth will captivate and surprise.

As command module pilot of Apollo 17, the last crewed flight to the moon, Ron Evans combined precision flying and painstaking geological observation with moments of delight and enthusiasm. On his way to the launchpad, he literally jumped for joy in his spacesuit. Emerging from the command module to conduct his crucial spacewalk, he exclaimed, "Hot diggity dog!" and waved a greeting to his family. As a patriotic American in charge of command module America, Evans was nicknamed "Captain America" by his fellow crew members. Born in 1933 in St. Francis, Kansas, Evans distinguished himself academically and athletically in school, earned degrees in electrical engineering and aeronautical engineering, and became a naval aviator and a combat flight instructor. He was one of the few astronauts who served in combat during the Vietnam War, flying more than a hundred missions off the deck of the USS Ticonderoga, the same aircraft carrier that would recover him and his fellow astronauts after the splashdown of Apollo 17. Evans's astronaut career spans the Apollo missions and beyond. He served on the support crews for 1, 7, and 11 and on the Apollo 14 backup crew before being selected for Apollo 17 and flying on the final moon mission in 1972. He next trained with Soviet cosmonauts as backup command module pilot for the 1975 Apollo-Soyuz mission and carried out early work on the space shuttle program. Evans then left NASA to pursue a business career. He died suddenly in 1990 at the age of fifty-six.

In the span of a single lifetime, light pollution stemming from Artificial Light At Night (ALAN) has severed our connection with the stars that we've had since the dawn of time. With the nocturnal biosphere significantly altered, light's anthropogenic influence has compelled millions of people to seek out the last remaining dark skies. This book explores the burgeoning growth of the astrotourism market, identifies star seeker trends, how the stars have shaped civilizations, and the budding space tourism industry. Discover ways to develop a destination for those who will cater to the astrotourist, share the night with guests, how to find customers, and the 2024 Great North American Eclipse. Meteor storms, eclipses, auroras, and other celestial phenomena have lured travellers for years. Here, the author expands the field of astrotourism with the inclusion of astronomical clocks, megaliths, and sundials, which are used to track the movement of the stars.