Practical Amateur Spectroscopy [Paperback]

Stephen F. Tonkin (Editor)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 1852334894 | ISBN-13: 978-1852334895 | Publication Date: June 10, 2002 | Edition: 1st Edition.

This book contains everything an amateur astronomer needs to know to begin observing whilst going relatively deeply into the subject for those who are already involved. Covers a very wide range of available equipment, from simple DIY spectroscopes to the most expensive commercially-made instruments. Describes basic principles so that the reader understands how to analyse the spectra he/she sees or records. Contributions by leading amateurs astronomers from the USA and Europe.

Editorial Reviews

Review

From the reviews:

"Although essential to professionals – spectroscopy has largely been ignored by amateurs as a ‘black art’. This book – the first of its kind – should help redress the balance. … Spectroscopy is a big subject for the dedicated amateur and this book just begins to scratch the surface. It contains plenty of useful references and websites and the minimum of maths. … this is the only current book on amateur spectroscopy and must be recommended." (Maurice Gavin, Astronomy Now, May, 2003)

"The latest serving from Springer is all about spectroscopy – an important subject, as much of what we know about the Universe comes from the study of light. The book starts with a substantial and excellent roundup of the physics behind light and stellar spectra. … there are useful sections on building spectroscopes for mounting to telescopes … . The book did spark an interest in spectroscopy and a desire to learn more … ." (John Rowlands, Popular Astronomy, Vol. 50 (2), 2003)

"This book, part of Springer’s Practical Astronomy series, is a sampler authored by six practitioners of the slowly growing interest in amateur spectroscopy. … Spectroscopy is a huge subject with innumerable specialist targets even for the amateur. The contents of this book reflect the authors’ interests. As the only current book on amateur spectroscopy it must be recommended." (Maurice Gavin, Journal of the British Astronomical Association, Vol. 112 (6), 2002)

"The spectroscope is undoubtedly a powerful analytical tool providing a foundation stone for modern professional astronomy and ‘Practical amateur Spectroscopy’ is a concise book helping explain the basics. … As it was back in 1982 that I studied A-level physics, this book was a much-needed refresher course for me. … if your academic background is in the sciences, particularly physics and mathematics, then I think this book is a really good read providing a fascinating insight into a very important facet of astronomy." (Philip Moran, Astronomy & Space, January, 2003)

Product Details

• Paperback: 223 pages
• Publisher: Springer; 1st Edition. edition (June 10, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1852334894
• ISBN-13: 978-1852334895
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.3 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,221,749 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good book for advanced amateurs, September 14, 2009

By 

P. Temple (Deming, NM) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Practical Amateur Spectroscopy (Paperback)

This book only got 4 out of 5 stars due to it's emphasis on photography. The chapter using a grating to image through would be even more helpful if it included CCD instead of scanning in 35mm pictures. However, the section on using V-spec was a lifesaver. The V-Spec manual assumes you just need a refresher on how to use it and is very confusing! The description in this book got me over the hump and on the road to calibrating spectra!
Overall it is a good intro to the subject and provides a lot of hands on material for the advanced amateur.

5 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Does anyone check for errors anymore?, January 21, 2009

By 

Francis J. Oreilly "Francis J. O'Reilly" (Mahopac, NY) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Practical Amateur Spectroscopy (Paperback)

I originally rated this book very highly, but as I got deeper into it, I was quite dissapointed. If I were able to retract the five star rating I gave it initially, I would replace the rating with one star.

This book is so fraught with arithmetic errors, factual errors and poor typechecking as to be useless. I strongly recommend that this edition be avoided. Hopefully, Mr. Tonkin will pay attention to editing the book before publishing a second edition and passing it off as a beginner's guide.

Francis J. O'Reilly