Pluto and Charon: Ice Worlds on the Ragged Edge of the Solar System (Paperback)

~ (Author), Jacqueline Mitton (Author) "The faint starry image jumped a little-very little, in fact..." (more)
Key Phrases: methane signature, ice dwarfs, mutual events, Lowell Observatory, Pluto Express, Mauna Kea (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"In this new edition, excellent writer Mitton and productive NASA scientist Stern have significantly updated their book…highly recommended." (CHOICE, May 2006)

"…contains a wealth of scientific findings about Pluto, Charon, and many other Kuiper Belt objects." (Sky & Telescope, April 2006)

Rave reviews for Pluto and Charon: Ice Worlds on the Ragged Edge of the Solar System:

"The story of the quest to understand Pluto and the resulting transformation of our concept of the diminutive planet from that of solar-system misfit to king of the Kuiper Belt is told in this book by Alan Stern and Jacqueline Mitton. Stern, a Plutophile to the core, is one of the most energetic, talented, and savvy planetary astronomers in the business today. Mitton, trained as an astronomer, is an experienced writer and editor of scientific books for nonscientists. Together they have created an immensely informative book . . . Written in an engaging and informal style, Pluto and Charon takes the reader step by step from the discovery of the ninth planet in 1930 to the current understanding of Pluto and its moon, Charon." (Sky & Telescope)

"More than a book summarizing what we know about [the] planet, [Pluto and Charon is] about how far and how fast astronomical technology has come since 1965 . . . Stern and Mitton use the narrative of Pluto research to explain in comfortable, everyday language how such work is done . . . One of the nice touches in the book is that Stern and Mitton tell us something about each astronomer." (Astronomy)

"Pluto and Charon presents the exploration of the ninth planet-written as a vivid historical account-for anyone with an interest in science and astronomy . . . the authors describe in simple language the methods researchers use to explore the universe and the way ever-improving instrumentation helps their knowledge advance." (Physics Today) --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Product Description

Which planet is furthest from the sun? It's a question whose answer has just changed. For the last 20 years, the answer was Neptune, giving scientists the opportunity to study the closer Pluto. As of February 1999, Pluto has again looped out beyond Neptune's orbit, and will remain there until 2,232.--ABCNews.com For the first time in nearly two decades, here is the story of this distant planet of the solar system and its moon Despite our growing understanding of Pluto and its moon Charon, there have not been any books written on them since 1981, when Clyde Tombaugh's book was published in honor of the fiftieth anniversary of Pluto's discovery. Now well-known astronomer Alan Stern presents the first popular account of what we have learned about Pluto and Charon since 1980. It starts with the discovery of Pluto in 1930 and culminates with observations obtained with the Hubble Space Telescope in 1996. S. Alan Stern (Louisville, CO) works at Southwest Research Institute. Jacqueline Mitton (Cambridge, England) is a Public Relations Officer at the Royal Astronomical Society.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 232 pages
• Publisher: Wiley-Interscience; illustrated edition edition (September 3, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0471353841
• ISBN-13: 978-0471353843
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.8 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #2,421,831 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A good introduction to the ninth planet, September 5, 2001

By	Ritesh Laud (Houston, TX USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This book is a well-written and enjoyable summary of what we know about Pluto and its relatively huge moon Charon. However, the fact of the matter is we don't know much because we have yet to send a spacecraft to this fascinating double planet! Stern and Mitton do a great job presenting the timeline of our discoveries about Pluto as well as the latest theories on the compositions and origin of these bodies.

I was especially impressed with the discussion of Pluto's atmosphere changing as a result of the planet's greatly elliptical orbit around the Sun. In addition, the authors give a great detailed breakdown of the discoveries gleaned from the mutual occultations in the late 80s. Also, this book was written several years ago but we have since indeed found many more Kuiper Belt objects that lend great credibility to the theory of Pluto simply being one of the largest of that family.

Too much time was spent on describing the birth and continuing struggles of the Pluto Express project. This discussion would have been more appropriate if the spacecraft had even launched, let alone successfully completed its mission. But the fact is that NASA's funding issues have kept the project grounded for now. Hopefully it'll fly in the next couple years. If it doesn't, much of the mission may be compromised because Pluto is getting farther from the Sun each day and as a result its atmospheric activity is dying.

Overall a great effort and worth your time. Don't expect incredible revelations and photographs though, because we still have yet to visit the place!

6 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Brand New Perspective On Our Solar System, November 27, 1999

By	Stan (New York USA) - See all my reviews

A well written historic perspective on our outer-most-planet that by books' end will change your view of our solar system.

A thoroughly enjoyable easy-to-read book. More hard science/discovery books should be written this way.

It's not just the facts that are amazing but the proven-wrong theories we use to have on Pluto. Too bad we're still waiting for our first encounter with this mysterious planet. If history proves right, the Voyager probes were just another step in our discovering the 'real' solar system.

4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A truly, truly fun read, September 23, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Pluto and Charon: Ice Worlds on the Ragged Edge of the Solar System (Hardcover)

What I really liked about this book was the very irreverent tone which did not take away one bit from the scientific rigor of the presentation. The authors have a sense of humor and a genuine passion for their subject and it shows. I also liked the fact that in order to present the history of the Pluto/Charon system the book had to explain the latest hot-off-the-presses revolution in our understanding of the evolution of the Solar System. This was the first time I have been exposed to the idea of massive planets cleaning out all the early system planetisimals and the implications for the formation of the Kuiper Belt and other solar systems. It's rare to find a serious science book which is hard to put down, but this is it. Great exposition, great story, great book.