Stellar evolution - the birth, development and death of stars - is central to our current understanding of astronomy, but surprisingly the majority of amateur astronomers lack a full understanding of the physics of stars. Current books on the market tend to be highly theoretical and off-putting, in Observer's Guide to Stellar Evolution, Mike Inglis brings this subject to life in a unique way. By combining a step-by-step introduction with suggestions for practical observations of stars at different stages in their evolution, amateur astronomers regardless of their current level of knowledge, will find this book fascinating and informative. -Accessible to every amateur astronomer, regardless of background knowledge. -Step-by-step introduction to the theory of stellar evolution. -Includes many examples of stars at different stages in their evolution, that the reader can observe for him/herself. -Mathematics is made accessible by being presented in 'boxes'that readers can skip over if they prefer!

From the reviews: "If you find science fiction films thought-provoking, this could be the book for you....The scope of the book is wide, with a good grounding in basic physics and biology, and a lot of other information besides." New Scientist "The idea of using science fiction films to convey science in an interesting way is sound, and anyone preparing a course using the genre should at least consult this book." Nature By revealing the facts behind the fiction of some of the finest films in the sci-fi genre, Fantastic Voyages offers a novel approach to teaching science--namely, it uses scenes from science fiction films to illustrate fundamental concepts of physics, astronomy, and biology. Each film scene depicts a scientific principle--or its violation-reinforcing concepts that are taught in more traditional ways. The chapter Electricity and Magnetism discusses the use of computers in Blade Runner. Within Astronomy, 2001 is examined as it relates to ancient astronauts. And what could be a better choice for the chapter on evolution than Planet of the Apes. Helpful end-of-chapter exercises are included, together with more than 20 movie stills. The new edition will have add material on astronomy and astrophysics as well as discussing several movies that have come out since the publication of the first edition.

Since comet Shoemaker-Levy collided with the planet Jupiter with stupendous force in 1994 there has been an upsurge of amateur interest in comets. Most comets are first discovered by amateur astronomers because there are so many amateurs looking for them, and techniques and instruments have improved dramatically in the past few years. After a short but detailed introduction to the comets themselves Nick James and Gerald North describe comet hunting, photographing and imaging comets, and digital image processing. The use of computers for orbital calculations and even helping to discover new comets is given a full chapter, as are advanced techniques including comet photometry and spectroscopy. This comprehensive book has an accompanying CD-ROM and is at once a "primer" for comet hunters and a reference text for more advanced amateur astronomers.

This could be the first dictionary of astronomy specifically written for practical amateur astronomers. In addition to definitions, it provides an invaluable reference source for terms, techniques, instruments, formulas and processes for practising observers, both amateur and professional. A special feature of this dictionary is extended definitions for many topics; they give sufficient information for many of the techniques and items of instrumentation to be used as well as understood. With over 200 illustrations and extensive appendices, this is an essential reference book for every astronomer.

Simone Marchi presents the emerging story of how cosmic collisions shaped both the solar system and our own planet, from the creation of the Moon to influencing the evolution of life on Earth. The Earth emerged out of the upheaval and chaos of massive collisions in the infancy of the Solar System, more than four billion years ago. The largest of these events sent into orbit a spray of molten rocks out of which the Moon coalesced. As in ancient mythological tales, this giant catastrophe marks the birth of our planet as we know it. Space exploration has shown that signs of ancient collisions are widespread in the Solar System, from the barren and once-habitable Mars to the rugged asteroids. On Earth these signs are more subtle, but still cataclysmic, such as the massive asteroid strike which likely sparked the demise of the dinosaurs and many other forms of life some 66 million years ago. Signatures of even more dramatic catastrophes are concealed in ancient rocks. These events wreaked havoc on our planet's surface, influencing global climate and topography, while also enriching the Earth with gold and other rare elements. And recently, modern science is finding that they could even have contributed to developing the conditions conducive to life. In Colliding Worlds, Simone Marchi explores the key role that collisions in space have played in the formation and evolution of our solar system, the development of planets, and possibly even the origin of life on Earth. Analysing our latest understanding of the surfaces of Mars and Venus, gleaned from recent space missions, Marchi presents the dramatic story of cosmic collisions and their legacies.

From the big bang to the present and into the next millenium, The Universe Story unites science and the humanities in a dramatic exploration of the unfolding of the universe, humanity's evolving place in the cosmos, and the boundless possibilities for our future.

From the author of Astrophysics for People in a Hurry and the host of Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey,a memoir about growing up and a young man's budding scientific curiosity. This is the absorbing story of Neil deGrasse Tyson's lifelong fascination with the night sky, a restless wonder that began some thirty years ago on the roof of his Bronx apartment building and eventually led him to become the director of the Hayden Planetarium. A unique chronicle of a young man who at one time was both nerd and jock, Tyson's memoir could well inspire other similarly curious youngsters to pursue their dreams. Like many athletic kids he played baseball, won medals in track and swimming, and was captain of his high school wrestling team. But at the same time he was setting up a telescope on winter nights, taking an advanced astronomy course at the Hayden Planetarium, and spending a summer vacation at an astronomy camp in the Mojave Desert. Eventually, his scientific curiosity prevailed, and he went on to graduate in physics from Harvard and to earn a Ph.D. in astrophysics from Columbia. There followed postdoctoral research at Princeton. In 1996, he became the director of the Hayden Planetarium, where some twenty-five years earlier he had been awed by the spectacular vista in the sky theater. Tyson pays tribute to the key teachers and mentors who recognized his precocious interests and abilities, and helped him succeed. He intersperses personal reminiscences with thoughts on scientific literacy, careful science vs. media hype, the possibility that a meteor could someday hit the Earth, dealing with society's racial stereotypes, what science can and cannot say about the existence of God, and many other interesting insights about science, society, and the nature of the universe. Now available in paperback with a new preface and other additions, this engaging memoir will enlighten and inspire an appreciation of astronomy and the wonders of our universe.

'Highly recommended' Financial Times Today we know of only a single planet that hosts life: the Earth. But across a Universe of at least 100 billion possibly habitable worlds, surely our planet isn't the only one that, like the porridge Goldilocks sought, is just right for life? Astrobiologists search the galaxy for conditions that are suitable for life to exist, focusing on similar worlds located at the perfect distance from their Sun, within the aptly named 'Goldilocks Zone'. Such a place might have liquid water on its surface, and may therefore support a thriving biosphere. What might life look like on other worlds? It is possible to make best-guesses using facts rooted in science, and by studying 'extremophiles' - organisms such as the near-indestructible water bears, which can survive in the harshest conditions that Earth, and even space, can offer. Goldilocks and the Water Bears is a tale of the origins and evolution of life, and the quest to find it on other planets, on moons, in other galaxies, and throughout the Universe.

GENESIS REVISED

"It takes a certain amount of courage to step beyond one’s day-to-day experiments and look at the big picture–and the origin of the Moon is a ‘big picture’ question par excellence. Perhaps it makes sense that William Hartmann, one of the two scientists who unraveled the Moon’s biggest mystery, is not only a scientist but also a part-time artist and science fiction writer. It took someone with an artist’s eye and a fiction writer’s speculative temperament to see the big picture.
"This is a book about that big picture: the origin of the Moon, as interpreted by Hartmann and Alastair Cameron, the second patriarch of ‘The Big Splat.’ It is also about a doomed planet called Theia, and a familiar one called Earth that used to look vastly different from today’s Earth. But, most of all, it is about a long lineage of intellectual voyagers who began exploring the Moon long before Neil Armstrong planted his boot into the lunar dust."
–– From the Introduction

The Earth in Context: A Guide to the Solar System tells a tale of scientific discovery, with two interwoven strands - one tracing the development of understanding the Earth's geological history, and the other placing this in the context of processes at work on the other planets of the solar system. Although planetology is assigned half of the text, the primary focus of the book is the Earth. It is discussed in two parts, the first summing up our knowledge of the Earth as it is today and the other considering it as it was long ago.

Because today's amateur astronomical telescopes are both powerful and affordable, spectroscopy - once the province of professionals - is becoming more and more popular. Various spectroscopes, at prices to suit everyone, are now available "off the shelf". Practical Amateur Spectroscopy contains everything an amateur needs to grasp the basic principles, to begin observing, and to understand just what the spectra show. Contributions by leading practical amateurs from America and Europe cover a very wide range of amateur equipment and techniques. One even describes how an audio CD can be used to show solar emission and absorption lines!

Almost every serious amateur astronomer knows the benefit of having a fixed observatory of some sort - it saves a vast amount of time and effort during every observing session - and this book provides the necessary help. More Small Astronomical Observatories details the methods and techniques employed by non-professional astronomers from all over the world, providing a wonderful resource for anyone wishing to build a small observatory of almost any kind. It's a fun read, too. Not only that, but a free PC-format CD-ROM is included, containing the entire first book (now out of print) - you get two books for the price of one!

In 1996 Meade, the world's largest astronomical telescope manufacturer, introduced the ETX, a low-cost and genuinely portable instrument capable of results close to the theoretical limits of optical performance. Since then several different models have been introduced, most of them controlled by on-board computers that automatically point the telescope at objects selected from a database of 12,000. Unfortunately not all these objects are visible when looking through the ETX! (They are included because they can be imaged with special equipment.) Mike Weasner is a world expert on the ETX range, and describes the "best" 100 objects to start with, and offers hints and tips about using and looking after the telescope to get the best possible results.

Skylab is not just a story of space hardware and space science, but also of space explorers and pioneers. Using official NASA documentation and interviews with the astronauts and key personnel, the inside story of Skylab is presented as the story unfolds. An evaluation of the lessons learnt from the programme and how these were, or were not, incorporated into the Space Shuttle and Space Station programme is also offered to present the value of Skylab in the context of the current programme, 25 years after the last crew came home.

Focusing on the Galileo Mission, the story will relate this remarkable spacecraft's protracted gestation and the ordeal of its long haul out to Jupiter and its ultimate triumph: 5 years exploration within the Jovian system. The story spans a full quarter of a century, drawing on the press conferences, technical papers and essays of engineers and scientists involved in the mission which provide a real sense of participation as the discoveries poured in - it will bring the mission of the Galileo spacecraft to life and provide a more engaging account than would simply be achieved by recounting scientific results. The book will conclude with a snapshot "look ahead" into the Cassini flyby of Jupiter in December 2000 shortly after publication - the book released to coincide with this media event.

This clear easy-to-understand book helps "new" amateur astronomers by answering the most frequently asked questions. The idea is to quickly take the reader to a level of expertise significantly higher than that provided by general books. Each chapter is on a different subject, from what to buy through to how to use it and what to look at. The tips and techniques are applicable to all telescope users.

In Gemini - Steps to the Moon, author David Shayler unfolds the story of the origin and development of the programme and the spacecraft from the perspective of the engineers, flight controllers and astronauts involved. It includes chapters on flight tests, Extra Vehicular Activity (EVA) and rendezvous and docking.

Are you an avid sky-watcher? Would you like to observe the changes in the moon’s surface? Predict the orbit of a satellite? Record sunspots?

Finally, here is the book you’ve been waiting for! From the longest-running column in Scientific American’s history comes this collection of fascinating projects for the amateur astronomer. Whether you’re interested in designing your own telescope or determining the chemical composition of faraway stars, this unique book will help you satisfy your passion for the skies. You’ll learn how to build and use astronomical tools that will help you better understand and appreciate the solar system, our galaxy, and the cosmos.

Here you’ll discover fascinating facts about astronomy along with helpful tips and clear instructions on how to build inexpensive astronomical instruments in home-based workshops using ordinary shop tools. From making a pendulum that detects the earth’s rotation, to observing Jupiter with a homemade telescope, to taking picture-perfect images of a comet, these projects will help you go deeper into space than you’ve ever imagined.

Although transits of planets across the Sun are rare (only Mercury and Venus orbit the Sun closer than us, and so can transit the Sun's disc) amateur astronomers can observe, record and image other kinds of transit, which are very much more frequent. Transit is in two parts, the first telling the fascinating story of the early scientific expeditions to observe transits. The second part is for practical observers, and explains how to observe transits of all sorts - even transits of aircraft as they fly between the observer and the Sun!

Deep-sky observing - that's looking at the stars, nebulae and galaxies - is easily the most popular field for amateur astronomers. The big problem faced by non-professional observers is what to look at - what's visible at a paticular time of year. The Deep-sky Observer's Year is a month-by-month guide to the best objects to view. Objects are given a "star rating" according to how difficult they are to observe or image (i.e. photograph) with a particular size of telescope. The book includes many images produced by amateur astronomers, as well as photographs from NASA, ESA and ESO. There is also some background information about the objects that can be seen, along with lots of useful tips, hints, and resources (especially about what's available on the Internet) for deep-sky observers.

The discovery of life on other planets would be perhaps the most momentous revelation in human history, more disorienting and more profound than either the Copernican or Darwinian revolutions, which knocked the earth from the center of the universe and humankind from its position of lofty self-regard. In Here Be Dragons, astronomer David Koerner and neurobiologist Simon LeVay offer a scientifically compelling and colorful account of the search for life beyond Earth.
The authors survey the work of biologists, cosmologists, computer theorists, NASA engineers, SETI researchers, roboticists, and UFO enthusiasts and debunkers as they attempt to answer the greatest remaining question facing humankind: Are we alone? From their "safe haven of skepticism" the authors venture into the "rough seas of speculation," where theory and evidence run the gamut from hard science to hocus pocus. Arguing that the universe is spectacularly suited for the evolution of living creatures, Koerner and LeVay give us ringside seats at the great debates of Big Science. The contenitous arguments about what really happens in evolution, the acrimonious UFO controversy, and the debate over intelligence versus artificial intelligence shed new light on the wildly divergent claims about the universe and life's place in it. The authors argue that while no direct evidence of extraterrestrial life yet exists, habitats and chemical building blocks for life abound in the universe. A wealth of new astronomical techniques and space missions may provide this evidence early in the next century.
Lucidly written and scientifically rigorous, Here Be Dragons presents everything we know thus far about the emergence of intelligent life here on earth and, perhaps, beyond.

We are still learning about the large-scale structures of the universe. Abrams and Stecker describe what we currently know of the near and far universe, but what sets this book apart from the rest is the illustrations. Stecker has a collection of some of the best and most spectacular astronomical photographs ever taken. The book is mostly illustrated with black and white photographs, but the CD-ROM supplied with the book is a veritable explosion of beautiful colour images, far more than could be squeezed into any normal book. An added benefit of this is that by using an inexpensive inkjet printer, a reader can look at pictures on screen, or print them out in colour with "photo quality".

In a year that will probably be remembered almost as much for books about the millennium as for the turn of 2000 A.D itself, Patrick Moore's Millennium Yearbook celebrates.....well, the wrong millennium! This thoroughly entertaining book - which is for everyone, not just astronomers - contains articles on King Alfred's chronological work, reviews of the new Star Catalogue by the Arab Al-Sufi and the latest edition of Ptolemy's Almagast. And foreshadowing the change to metric units by 1000 years, the book uses arabic numbers instead of Roman - but there is a conversion table if you have trouble with the idea of "zero" and prefer the older system.

Discover the celestial myths and cosmic rituals of ancient priests and kings . . .

Drawing on intimate knowledge of the more than 1,300 ancient sites he has visited, E. C. Krupp, acclaimed writer and preeminent researcher, takes you to the world's essential sacred places and celestial shrines. Join him on a rich narrative journey to see where the rulers of old communed with the gods of the sky.

"Highly recommended to everyone interested in the culture of astronomy and those peoples who practiced it in their own ways."—Sky & Telescope

"A lively account of the ways in which our ancestors conceived of and used the heavens."—New Scientist

"There can be no doubt that this imaginative and readable work by a widely read and widely traveled author will strike a chord in the minds of a great many modern readers."—Isis

"The fact that the book is written by an expert in his field comes through on every page, as does his enthusiasm for the subject."—Astronomy Now

"Krupp's indispensable volume is fascinating, well-illustrated, and covers much territory."—Parabola