Stars and Planets: The Most Complete Guide to the Stars, Planets, Galaxies, and the Solar System (Fully Revised and Expanded Edition) (Princeton Field Guides) [Paperback]

Wil Tirion (Author), Ian Ridpath (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 3, 2008 | ISBN-10: 0691135568 | ISBN-13: 978-0691135564 | Edition: 4 Rev Exp

In this new edition of their classic work, Ian Ridpath and Wil Tirion illuminate the night sky as never before, providing novice stargazers and professional astronomers alike with the most comprehensive and authoritative celestial field guide available. With superb color sky charts, diagrams, or photographs on almost every page, and clear and engaging writing, Stars and Planets is the most user-friendly and informative guide to the night sky. The product of more than twenty years' collaboration between one of the world's leading astronomy writers and the world's foremost celestial mapmaker, the new Stars and Planets features a slightly larger (but still compact) size, a more spacious and attractive design, and much new material, including more information on galaxies and star types. Simply put, Stars and Planets is indispensable. Don't leave home--at night--without it.

• Detailed charts covering all 88 constellations in the Northern and Southern hemispheres
• Data and notes on all bright stars and other objects of interest
• Detailed Moon maps and descriptions of the main lunar features
• Tips on choosing and using binoculars and telescopes, to suit any budget
• The only guide to provide annual planetary data as a downloadable Web resource

Editorial Reviews

Review

Though it is small enough to fit into a coat pocket on a cool, dark evening, the amount of the material within could fill volumes. The book seems designed to convert curious readers into stargazers...This is your atlas to the observable universe. -- Science News

New space enthusiasts will enjoy hundreds of images surrounded by Ian Ridpath's splendid, up-to-date overviews of every topic in this book's lengthy subtitle. It's a very digestible introduction to astronomy and planetary science. . . . The Moon maps section is the best I've ever seen. And observers who don't already cherish his Sky Atlas 2000.0 will relish Wil Tirion's 100+ elegant but content-rich sky maps. . . . [I]t's an accurate and handy reference book that has helped even this seasoned astronomer. -- Tania Burchell, Sky & Telescope

Praise for previous editions: "This marvelously dense field guide tells you everything you need to know to find your way around the sky, whether you are an eager novice who is just looking around or a serious observer using binoculars or a telescope. -- Discover

Praise for previous editions: "[A] first-class pocket field guide to the sky . . . . The charts, by Wil Tirion, are what we would expect of this master of celestial cartography; they are uncluttered, easy to read, and compress many (but not too many!) objects in a small space?. [A] very nicely produced book. -- John Mosley, Planetarian

Praise for previous editions: "The handy size, copious illustrations, maps, and charts, as well as the latest in astrophotography throughout . . . practically beg[s] astronomers to take [Stars and Planets] along to star parties. -- Astronomy

Praise for previous editions: "[C]omprehensive yet compact . . . this beautiful guide is suitable for amateurs and novices as well as stargazers more acquainted with navigating their night skies. -- Irene Wanner, Seattle Times

Praise for previous editions: "[A] rich resource for advanced amateurs, but novices will also like the star charts (both Northern and Southern hemispheres) and abundant explanatory text detailing each of the 88 constellations and the stars within them, as well as the sun, moon, planets, and Milky Way. -- Library Journal

Praise for previous editions: "For those who gaze at the night sky, seeking the familiar patterns known to sailors and shepherds, this field guide will be an invaluable companion. -- Bruce E. Fleury, Science Books & Films

From the Back Cover

Praise for previous editions: "Ridpath and Tirion are an unbeatable team. Ridpath writes concisely and movingly about the sky, and Tirion's charts are beautifully done and easy to follow. This is a superb guide to the night sky."--David H. Levy, codiscoverer of the Shoemaker-Levy 9 comet

Praise for previous editions: "A concise and beautifully illustrated guide to the sky's best sights, and to the science behind them."--Mitchell Begelman, author of Turn Right at Orion: Travels through the Cosmos

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Princeton University Press; 4 Rev Exp edition (January 3, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0691135568
• ISBN-13: 978-0691135564
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5.5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #225,446 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #62 in Books > Professional & Technical > Professional Science > Astronomy & Space Science > Star-Gazing

More About the Author

Many of today's amateur stargazers learned their way around the night sky with the observing guides of Ian Ridpath. Among these are The Monthly Sky Guide, now in its 8th edition; the Collins Stars and Planets Guide (known in the US as the Princeton Field Guide to Stars and Planets), now in its 4th edition; and Collins Gem Stars. A particular interest of Ian's is the Greek myths of the constellations, which he wrote about in his book Star Tales.

Ian is editor of the authoritative Oxford Dictionary of Astronomy and is a former Council member of the Royal Astronomical Society. He was a major contributor to the recent Dorling Kindersley encyclopedia Universe, and is author of Dorling Kindersley's Eyewitness Companion to Astronomy.

He is also a leading UFO skeptic and is well-known for his investigation and explanation of Britain's leading UFO case, the Rendlesham Forest Incident.

For more about Ian Ridpath, see his personal website
http://www.ianridpath.com
and his entry in Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ian_Ridpath

Support pages for Ian Ridpath's books in print can be found here
http://www.ianridpath.com/books/support.htm

For talks by Ian Ridpath see
http://www.ianridpath.com/cv/lectures.htm

Read Ian Ridpath's author blog
http://ianridpathauthorblog.blogspot.com/

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars New edition review of Stars and Planets, March 5, 2008

By 

W. Dellinges "Amateur astronomer" (Phoenix, AZ USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Stars and Planets: The Most Complete Guide to the Stars, Planets, Galaxies, and the Solar System (Fully Revised and Expanded Edition) (Princeton Field Guides) (Paperback)

This is the latest (Jan 2008) edition of the venerable Ridpath and Tirion handbook originally published in 1985. Mine was originally titled Universe Guide to Stars and Planets and has served me well all these years as a guide to use in the field. This new book is one inch wider, 1/2 inch taller and has 15 more pages. The format is similar: 1/3 all sky maps, 1/3 coverage of all 88 constellations including details of stars, nebulae, clusters, etc., 1/3 astrophysical data. The middle third is what always appealed to me as that section helps in my stargazing. In addition to updating data (for instance, pluto's demotion and the new dwarf planet nomenclature is here, latest updated distances, and data boxes for each planet) this new edition has all color photographs - with one or two exceptions - and RA/Dec coordinates for listed objects described in the middle constellation section. I especially liked the additon of close up charts of the Hyades and Pleiades clusters under Taurus' listing. Here also is a composite photo comparing the full moon's size to the Pleiades. I look forward to this book replacing my worn out original! I have two minor gripes though: I wish the printing was bolder or darker, it looks somewhat pale compared with my older book. Perhaps because the book is new or the binding is tight, it doesn't open wide easily to read. Perhaps with usage it will. And maybe I'll adapt to the paler print. Still, considering the content and price - this book is a winner. I can think of no other one book to rely on in the field for a stargazer's reference for use at the telescope.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Nice effort, great for newbies, June 14, 2008

By 

Ivan W. Ong (Charlotte, North Carolina United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Stars and Planets: The Most Complete Guide to the Stars, Planets, Galaxies, and the Solar System (Fully Revised and Expanded Edition) (Princeton Field Guides) (Paperback)

The book is thoughtfully produced and contains a wealth of information. The constellation by constellation maps are attractive and readable and the highlighted descriptions of selected objects of interest accompanying each map are informative and do capture the main highlights of each constellation. The planets section is useful, especially for those with suitable telescopes. The lunar pages with maps are very good and field usable.

What I don't like:
-binding very stiff to open in the field.
-very sadly, the double stars mentioned in the constellation sections have no mention of apparent separation. Not sure while this is left out. It is certainly very valuable having separation distances instead of "can be seen with a small telescope", a description that is not too useful for folks with different telescopes wanting to have a go at double star observation. For example, one might want to try Mizar, Izar and Antares- separation measurements would be most helpful for planning an approach for each of these, instead of telling us how many light years away from earth is each star.

All in all, for me, a very nice handbook, but not as great as an observational aid in the field.
Ivan

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Stellar Excellence, February 10, 2010

By 

Paul - See all my reviews

This review is from: Stars and Planets: The Most Complete Guide to the Stars, Planets, Galaxies, and the Solar System (Fully Revised and Expanded Edition) (Princeton Field Guides) (Paperback)

If you're a beginning astronomer, or already have basic knowledge, this is the book for you. I teach astronomy to the general public and I always recommend this book to my students. It has a great overview of the constellations, the planets, deep sky objects and the cosmos in general. What I like is that for each constellation you have nice sized maps, star names, scientific information and even a general outline of the mythology relating to each of the constellations. Its only flaw is that I live in the southern hemisphere, so all the maps are upside down! Ah well, I'll manage. I'd love to see a southern hemisphere version in the future with the maps the correct way up :) Buy this book it's great!