The Astronomy and Astrophysics Encyclopedia [Hardcover]

Stephen P. Maran (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1991 | ISBN-10: 0442263643 | ISBN-13: 978-0442263645

Features 403 articles by experts on theory, research and future scientific investigations. Special attention is given to background radiation and space exploration.

Editorial Reviews

Review

' ... presents a broad picture of present-day astronomical knowledge and research.' Nature

' ... bridges the gap between popular accounts and full-blown research treatises.' Physics World

' ... a comprehensive in-depth coverage of space subjects going beyond those normally found in the standard science encyclopedia.' Spaceflight --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Book Description

The Astronomy and Astrophysics Encyclopedia is a landmark publication that summarises astronomers' knowledge of the universe and its contents in 1000 pages. There are 403 alphabetically arranged articles on topics from Accretion to Zodiacal Light. The articles are written by more than 100 professional astronomers, selected on a world wide basis by an advisory board of 24 distinguished scientists. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 464 pages
• Publisher: Van Nostrand Reinhold (September 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0442263643
• ISBN-13: 978-0442263645
• Product Dimensions: 11.4 x 8.8 x 2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,822,278 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Comprehensive & Detailed & Scholarly - a massive work. Semi-popular to Beginning Professional level., February 2, 2012

By 

R. A. Lang "madbioman" (Brisbane, Australia) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Astronomy and Astrophysics Encyclopedia (Hardcover)

This large and massive One Volume reference work is not to be confused with a much more expensive multi-volume reference having a very similar name. (and which is very similar in most ways)

Maran's book actually fully realizes the concept of a comprehensive and detailed encyclopaedia - in that each article (approximately 1-3 pages of dense and tiny type) is a detailed and accurate discussion of the topic it conveys, written by an expert in that specialized topic. Reading all of the Very Numerous relevant articles on external galaxies, the Milky Way, the interstellar medium, stars and stellar evolution, and star formation, can save you a lot of grief; these relevant entries offer (to the diligent and SERIOUSLY INQUISITIVE person) a very fast and very efficient path to detailed knowledge of the contents of stellar, Galactic, and extragalactic astronomy - moreover with virtually no maths.

(( If I would have started with this book, and worked my way through the relevant articles, it would have been so much faster than the many years I spent laboriously patching together my knowledge of galaxies from multiple sources of information. ))

This comprehensive and detailed reference work offers an efficient path to obtaining real knowledge of the detailed contents of astronomy; it is ideal for serious students, non-astronomical scientists who need to learn astronomy, very diligent & dedicated amateur astronomers, people with knowledge of physics/maths but not astronomy, etc.

Everybody with a really serious interest in stars, the interstellar medium, and galaxies, should have a copy of this book!

[[ The articles on external galaxies are now slightly out-of-date, but it is easy enough to update one's knowledge with online articles, e.g. those in the "Level 5" database at NED.]]