Aimed at senior undergraduates and postgraduates in physics and astronomy, this textbook offers an introduction to a range of astrophysical subjects, emphasizing physical concepts. The edition has been revised to include a new chapter in which the author traces the history of the universe.
Astrophysical Concepts
and over one million other books are available for Amazon Kindle.
Learn more
FREE Two-Day Shipping for students on millions of items. Learn more |
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From Scientific American
Astronomer Harwit has finally updated his classic textbook to encompass the exciting developments of the decade since its last edition. It is ideal for those Scientific American readers who are mathematically literate and who want to pursue topics covered in the magazine to greater depth. Harwit takes a thematic approach to the subject, oriented around the guiding physical principles rather than the conventional sequence of planet, star, galaxy and cosmos. The approach rewards readers who just want to flip through the book as well as students who want to derive for themselves some of the basic equations in astronomy. Harwit also includes an idiosyncratic sampling of unorthodox topics such as faster-than-light particles, steady-state cosmology and panspermia.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Review
FROM REVIEWS OF THE PREVIOUS EDITION "a clear, solid introduction to astrophysics ... that shows how physics can be applied to astronomical objects ... One of the strong points is the problems (that) give students a real feel for the sort of calculations astronomers must do ... were I teaching a junior/senior astrophysics course, this is the book I would use." AM.J.PHYS. "This is a popular book among professional astrophysicists, produced with that meticulous detail and completeness of the house of Springer … This is indeed a theoretician’s book [and] Harwit has made a prodigious effort in organizing all this information in a logical sequence … A masterly mathematical exposition of a galaxy of astrophysical processes." Astronomy The great strength of the book lies in the lucidity and elegance with which chosen topics are quantitatively developed using elementary and clever arguments, instructive problems being distributed throughout, and in the skeptical spirit of inquiry that pervades the writing." NATURE "Astronomer Harwit has finally updated his classic textbook to encompass the exciting developments of the decade since its last edition. It is ideal for those Scientific American readers who are mathematically literate and who want to pursue topics covered in the magazine to greater depth. Harwit takes a thematic approach to the subject, oriented around the guiding physical principles rather than the conventional sequence of planet, star, galaxy and cosmos. The approach rewards readers who just want to flip through the book as well as students who want to derive for themselves some of the basic equations in astronomy." SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN
--This text refers to the
Paperback
edition.
Product Details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
More About the Author
Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
46 of 46 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Comprehensive and interesting,
This review is from: Astrophysical Concepts (Astronomy and Astrophysics Library) (Hardcover)
I'm currently teaching a topics class on astrophysics to a collection of (mostly) senior level non-physics majors (engineers, math majors, computer scientists, etc) and had a lot of trouble trying to find an appropriate book. There are not many which are both (a) detailed, (b) broad, and (c) at the appropriate level. Most books for undergraduates are either too focused (i.e. on cosmology) or too elementary. Most of the comprehensive books are too advanced.This book strikes a nice balance between mathematical sophistication and generality, but it can be a little difficult to read in places, particularly for someone without a strong physics background. Since my class consists mostly of interested, advanced, non-physics majors I didn't feel that the book meshed well with my class goals. However, the book did suit *me* very well and I'm using it extensively as a source of examples, additional problems and lecture preparation. I selected "Modern Astrophysics" by Carroll and Ostlie as the class text because it was a little more wordy and explanitory and because the "astrophysical sketch" approach taken in Harwitt's book is fine for someone who has a strong background in physics (which is, after all, the intended audience) but not "user friendly" enough for advanced students from other fields. It was a tough choice though - this is an excellent book.
1 of 26 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
too vague,
By A Customer
This review is from: Astrophysical Concepts (Astronomy and Astrophysics Library) (Hardcover)
too vague, its not bad...its alright
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
|
|
Inside This Book
(learn more)
Browse and search another edition of this book.
Browse and search another edition of this book.
Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs):
(learn more)
solar nebula, radiative repulsion, ambient universe, gravitational time delay, gravitational delay, ionized hydrogen regions, particle horizon, comoving distance, last scatter, fundamental observer, radiation bath, curvature fluctuations, cosmic magnetic fields, ionization front, contracting cloud, high red shifts, ionizing photons, ionized medium Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Solar System, Milky Way, Local Group, Crab Nebula, Selected Problems, Magellanic Clouds, Population Ill, Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe, New York, Large Magellanic Cloud, Annual Reviews, Sco X-l Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
solar nebula, radiative repulsion, ambient universe, gravitational time delay, gravitational delay, ionized hydrogen regions, particle horizon, comoving distance, last scatter, fundamental observer, radiation bath, curvature fluctuations, cosmic magnetic fields, ionization front, contracting cloud, high red shifts, ionizing photons, ionized medium Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Solar System, Milky Way, Local Group, Crab Nebula, Selected Problems, Magellanic Clouds, Population Ill, Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe, New York, Large Magellanic Cloud, Annual Reviews, Sco X-l Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Citations (learn more)
47
books
cite this book:
See all 47 books citing this book
- Bye Bye Big Bang: Hello Reality by William C. Mitchell on page 89, page 115, and Back Matter
- Future Spacecraft Propulsion Systems: Enabling Technologies for Space Exploration (Springer Praxis Books / Astronautical Engineering) by Paul A. Czysz on page 34, and page 418
- In the Beginning: Compelling Evidence for Creation and the Flood (7th Edition) by Walter T. Brown on page 73, and page 217
- The Gravitational Constant: Generalized Gravitational Theories and Experiments (NATO Science Series II: Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry) by V. de Sabbata on page 79
- Observational Astrophysics by Robert C. Smith in Back Matter
See all 47 books citing this book
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Suggested Tags from Similar Products(What's this?)Be the first one to add a relevant tag (keyword that's strongly related to this product).
|
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
|
|
