A Walk through the Southern Sky: A Guide to Stars and Constellations and their Legends [Paperback]

Milton D. Heifetz (Author), Wil Tirion (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0521665140 | ISBN-13: 978-0521665148 | Publication Date: August 15, 2000 | Edition: 1st

Make each night a meaningful stargazing experience with A Walk Through the Southern Sky. This ultimate guide to the heavens takes the guesswork out of identifying constellations and fosters appreciation of their beauty and significance. All you need are your eyes; this trusty volume takes care of the rest. This volume brings to stargazers in the Southern hemisphere the same insightful coverage and accessibility that Heifetz and Tirion's previous volume--A Walk Through the Heavens--did for those up North. Its unique, simplified maps not only make constellations easy to find but also help locate the stars within them. Without having to use a telescope or other astronomical equipment, readers can gauge the sizes and separations between constellations, and easily move from one to the other, by simply following the book's clear instructions. In addition, the ancient myths and legends surrounding the constellations, are retold, providing a rich historical prespective. Beautifully illustrated by Wil Tirion, this is an ideal introduction to launch the novice astronomer on a journey across the starlit skies.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Its unique, simplified maps not only make constellations easy to find but also help locate the stars within them. Without having to use a telescope or other astronomical equipment, readers can gauge the sizes and separations between constellations, and easily move from one to the other, by simply following the book's clear instructions. In addition, the ancient myths and legends surrounding the constellations, are retold, providing a rich historical perspective." Astronomical Society of the Pacific

"Original." Forecast

Book Description

A Walk Through the Southern Sky is a beautiful guide to pathways in the night sky. Its unique simplified maps and clear instructions make it easy to find by eye the constellations and stars within them, to gauge sizes and distances, and move easily between constellations. Ancient myths and legends of the sky are retold. Magically illustrated by Wil Tirion, this is an ideal introduction to launch the young astronomer on a journey across the starlit skies.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 120 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press; 1st edition (August 15, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521665140
• ISBN-13: 978-0521665148
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 7.2 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,150,146 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Learning the Southern Sky, April 9, 2001

By 

Julio Colombo (Los Polvorines, Buenos Aires, Argentina) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Walk through the Southern Sky: A Guide to Stars and Constellations and their Legends (Paperback)

After deciding to go into the Observational Astronomy hobby, I have been denying experts' advise for months. Although being almost a rookie, "start with a pair of binoculars", "plan your session ahead" and so on seemed trivial to me. This book helps the reader to solve which is probably the very first lesson to begin with: "learn the sky". In addition to that, it is dedicated to the Southern Hemisphere, trascendental for those who live "below" the equator. "A walk through the Southern Sky" easily and friendly explains how to reach minor constellations starting at the major ones. From Orion and Canis Major, precise highways are traced to reach Canis Minor, Cancer, Lepus and so on. From Crux and Centauri, to Vela and so on. I had started with a friend's computerized scope, and always thought that "starhopping" would be imposible for me under light-polluted skies. Probably one of the major goals of the authors is having proved me wrong. Again, if I could, anybody can!

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Take this one with you, September 28, 2005

By 

A. G. Sanchez (Golden, Co. USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: A Walk through the Southern Sky: A Guide to Stars and Constellations and their Legends (Paperback)

I take a trip to the Southern Hemisphere on occasion and have been looking for a good compact guide to bring along with me. I find the simplified star charts really useful to get myself quickly oriented. I don't need a full blown super detailed star atlas with all kinds of unnecessary detail and clutter that I'm unable to use, and this one fits the bill in that respect.

It also covers basic mythology of the Southern Skies and makes an excellent companion to it's sister work on the Northern Skies.

If your more interested in deep sky objects of the Southern skies you'd be better off looking elsewhere as this book only lightly discusses DSO's.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic for Learning Naked Eye Astronomy, July 18, 2011

By 

Jon J A - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: A Walk through the Southern Sky: A Guide to Stars and Constellations and their Legends (Paperback)

This is a great book for naked eye astronomy. You will be able to learn where the constellations are located in the night sky as well as many major stars. It is easy to follow and there is something very beautiful about sky lore. Humans have always looked at the stars for guidance. Learning naked eye astronomy is very good for you and gives you a sense of connection with the cosmos and Earth's relationship with it.