Galactic Astronomy [Hardcover]

James Binney (Author), Michael Merrifield (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0691004021 | ISBN-13: 978-0691004020 | Publication Date: August 17, 1998

This is the definitive treatment of the phenomenology of galaxies--a clear and comprehensive volume that takes full account of the extraordinary recent advances in the field. The book supersedes the classic text Galactic Astronomy that James Binney wrote with Dimitri Mihalas, and complements Galactic Dynamics by Binney and Scott Tremaine. It will be invaluable to researchers and is accessible to any student who has a background in undergraduate physics.

The book draws on observations both of our own galaxy, the Milky Way, and of external galaxies. The two sources are complementary, since the former tends to be highly detailed but difficult to interpret, while the latter is typically poorer in quality but conceptually simpler to understand. Binney and Merrifield introduce all astronomical concepts necessary to understand the properties of galaxies, including coordinate systems, magnitudes and colors, the phenomenology of stars, the theory of stellar and chemical evolution, and the measurement of astronomical distances. The book's core covers the phenomenology of external galaxies, star clusters in the Milky Way, the interstellar media of external galaxies, gas in the Milky Way, the structure and kinematics of the stellar components of the Milky Way, and the kinematics of external galaxies.

Throughout, the book emphasizes the observational basis for current understanding of galactic astronomy, with references to the original literature. Offering both new information and a comprehensive view of its subject, it will be an indispensable source for professionals, as well as for graduate students and advanced undergraduates.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

James Binney is Professor of Physics and a Fellow of Merton College, University of Oxford. His books include Galactic Dynamics (Princeton), which he coauthored with Scott Tremaine. Michael Merrifield is University Lecturer in Astronomy at the University of Southampton.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 850 pages
• Publisher: Princeton University Press (August 17, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0691004021
• ISBN-13: 978-0691004020
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.4 x 1.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,729,863 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

40 of 44 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Thorough treatment of the subject of Galaxies, May 12, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Galactic Astronomy (Princeton Series in Astrophysics) (Paperback)

Galactic Astronomy is one of the most complete and up to date texts on the subject of galaxies. The text is not lacking in mathematical rigor and also includes the results of recent observations and analyses that complement the theoretical exposition of subjects. It ties together results from many fields and is a good text for anyone who is interested in the study of our Milky Way or of external galaxies. The first chapters include a good description of such basic topics as coordinate systems, astrometry, the magnitude scale, stellar spectra, and binary star kinematics. Other chapters include the Milky Way's stars, stellar populations, interstellar medium, star clusters, and stellar kinematics and show how our knowledge of these has been applied to better understand external galaxies as well. There are also chapters on galaxy morphology and the cosmological distance scale. Nice features of the book include a handy listing of astronomical research aids that are available on the world wide web, as well as lists of astronomical sky surveys and catalogs. Altogether, Galactic Astronomy is worth reading by any professional astronomer, grad student, or advanced undergraduate with an interest in the study of galaxies.

33 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Very disappointing, April 22, 2001

By 

Ron Berhans (Orlando, FL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Galactic Astronomy (Princeton Series in Astrophysics) (Paperback)

There are three specific areas in which this book fails. I will address them in turn: 1) The information is way out of date. Although the publishing date is recent, the authors have made very little attempt to present the major advances that have occurred in this science over the last few years. As a result of this problem, there is some critical information in the book that is simply inaccurate. The information reflects understandings that are five to ten years old - not what we know today. 2) The writing style is very difficult to follow. The authors seem to think they are writing for their fellow professional astronomers, not for students. They don't explain the concepts sufficiently and they end up leaving the reader confused and disappointed. 3) About half the pages are mostly mathematics. This is fine if you understand advanced math and you can follow the authors reasoning. The problem is that as I closely checked the math I found glaring errors in it. On just about every few pages there would be a math error. This makes it that much more difficult to understand the information. I would suggest you save your money - and frustration! Find a better book.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A fine intro and very useful quick reference, December 15, 2005

By 

ohmysohopeless (Nowhere to Go) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Galactic Astronomy (Princeton Series in Astrophysics) (Paperback)

Astronomy today deals with a wide array of exotic objects for which relevant physical processes vary so much. To be comprehensive and up-to-date at the same time in such an academic subject is no easy task. If you have the pleasure or dismay of having to expose yourself to the cutting edge information about any subject in astronomy, you know that astronomy in general is confusing as hell. To illuminate the most essential concepts and connection between what appears to be entirely different astrophysical phenomena is very hard, yet in my opinion this text book does a fairly decent job in that respect.

If you are literate about any of the details of astrophysics that this text book might gross over, you sure will find the information to be obsolete and rather simplistic. After all the book is not meant to be a collection of review articles. But since the book means to give you the first exposure to just about any subject in astronomy, the discussions are shallow yet to the point so that you will not lose your big picture in bogging yourself down to boring details. This still might be a slow read if you are really just starting out, but as you pick more astronomy you will start appreciating the conciseness which only help you connect things that you learned but have not necessarily been related in your world of knowledge.

And another important point is, can you come up with any other book that covers introductory astrophysics better? Maybe Shu or Carroll and Ostlie, but the list ends there pretty much.