Deep-Sky Companions: The Messier Objects (Hardcover)

~ Stephen James O'Meara (Author) "In 1744 a brilliant comet punctuated the night sky, attracting the eyes of people around the world and capturing the imagination of a 14-year-old named..." (more)
Key Phrases: keen averted vision, remarkable globular cluster, much brighter toward the middle, Milky Way, Globular Cluster Con, Ursa Major (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Steve O'Meara has been called "the best visual planetary observer of modern times." The first to spot Comet Halley on its return in 1985, the first to determine the rotation period of Uranus, he now turns his amazing visual skills to the deep sky.

Charles Messier was one of the best comet hunters of the 1700s, with 12 comet discoveries to his credit. He was frustrated because he kept wasting time looking at fuzzy objects that turned out not to be comets. The list he kept and published of "things that aren't comets" turned out to be his ticket to immortality.

Amateur astronomers of all ages enjoy tackling the Messier catalogue members, because they represent a good sampling of what's "out there," and because finding them helps to hone observing skills. In a sense, the Messier objects are the testing grounds for budding skywatchers.

O'Meara's guide is unique in conveying his approach to observing: "It's an approach based on creative perception and on using the imagination to see patterns and shapes in the subjects seen through the eyepiece. It involves using not just your eye but also your mind's eye to associate those patterns and shapes with things that are familiar with you, to create pictures and even stories." With O'Meara as your docent, you will truly appreciate the art of the universe. --Mary Ellen Curtin

Review

"...will become the standard reference book of the Messier objects for years to come." Science Books & Films

"All the essentials are here...O'Meara's book will be an invaluable guide to some of the finest showpieces in the heavens." New Scientist

"An excellent guide for anyone interested in observing this class of fascinating deep-sky objects." SpaceViews

"For those planning to...enjoy many fine celestial vistas, there is no better guide than Stephen O'Meara's book. For each object, a photograph, a finder chart, basic data and a quote from Messier's accounts are provided, with a discussion of what is seen through small telescopes, and some history of telescopic studies." Nature

"This delightful observing companion by veteran astronomical observer, photographer, and writer O'Meara summarizes the basics of observing (including definitions, concepts, and sky descriptions), and methods and equipment involved...amateur observers...will find this book to be exceptionally useful because it also gives one of the best approaches to observing. Coordinates, size and brightness, distance, excellent description, finding chart, photograph, and a drawing are listed for each object....Highly recommended." Choice

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 318 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press; illustrated edition edition (July 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521553326
• ISBN-13: 978-0521553322
• Product Dimensions: 10 x 7.2 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (26 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #567,894 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

45 of 51 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Messier for the terminally bored observer, November 4, 2003

By	Percy Smogg (Tulsa, OK USA) - See all my reviews

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I think an opposing opinion is a healthy thing, and here you have one. Here we have a book, not for the interested amateur who wishes to famaliarize him/herself with the topic, but for the experienced observer who has become so terminally bored that a heaping helping of fantasy is required to perk up the interest somewhat. For the observer wishing to learn, the "maps" in this book are the worst available and essentially worthless for someone not already reasonably famaliar with where to find these things. For the rest of us who don't live on a volcano in the middle of the Pacific ocean, no info is provided as to the conditions or aperture required to view a given object. O'Meara goes to considerable length to provide a sales pitch for the Televue Genesis, but the piddly photos featured in the book come from God only knows where -- definitely not O'Meara's scope; O'Meara couldn't even keep the photos to some kind of consistent scale, so the learning observer might go away thinking that M3 is three times the size of M13. In fact, the photos in the book are among the worst available. O'Meara tries to sell this deficiency by saying that he wanted to show what you would see in your telescope. The only problem with this is that the photos come from no "standard" telescope -- such as a 6 or 8 inch job -- and, for the most part, are not representative of what one will see in such a scope. I kept getting the feeling that O'Meara's whole purpose in writing this book was to tell us what a wonderful observer he is. The descriptions are indeed fanciful, wildly so in some cases. In comparing some of the hand drawings with the piddly photos, I was left wondering if maybe O'Meara's eyesight was influenced more by what he wanted to say he saw rather than the light emmanating from the object. And if O'Meara truly wanted the reader to gain some appreciation for fine detail present in an object, one has to ask if O'Meara ever heard the saying: A picture is worth a thousand words? For the hopelessly bored observer, or possibly for the snob, this book might be of some benefit. For the newbie needing a good, factual guide to finding, observing, and learning about the Messier objects, this book offers nearly worthless maps, the worst photography around, and instructions (maybe) on finding the object that will leave the less experienced amateur in the dark.

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a labor of love, January 5, 2002

By	M. H. Bayliss "book queen" - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This book is a tremendous help to those of us setting out to find the Messier objects. The biggest problem with finding objects is figuring out what they should like like in a telescope -- sometimes I've got something in the finder or telescope and I'm not certain what it is. O'Meara solves that problem by providing photographs and his terrific drawings, not to mention is verbal paintings which could make a blind person see the objects. He devoted hours to each single object, waxing poetic at times about the merits and downsides to every single object. The first few chapters give some good history and background of Messier and other famous comet hunters. As a final plus, the book is printed on very high quality glossy paper so it's a pleasure to read. As a field guide, it would have been helpful to have it spiral bound, but that's my only suggestion for improvement. The author even includes a helpful appendix of other interesting sky objects that are not Messier objects, all of which are worthwhile telescope targets. A winner!

26 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This book is an essential guide to the budding astronomer., April 4, 1999

By	Jason M. Diller "Nerd" (North Street, MI USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I am new to the hobby of astronomy and have been reading every book I can get my hands on. While I have come across several books that filled me in on planatary and lunar observations, these books were lacking in their descriptions of the Messier objects. Oh, I knew I should take a look at these celestial treasures. But which ones? And what would they really look like? Thank God for O'Meara's book! It was an unfortunate discovery for me that the pictures I see of various nebulas and galaxies are not the same views I will encounter in my 8-inch Newtonian reflector. (The cameras bring out more detail or the pictures are taken on bigger scopes.) However, what O'Meara does is describe each member of Charles Messier's 18th century catalogue, enclose a black and white photo, and then a detailed sketch of what he saw through a 4-inch telescope. The book is in numerical order so finding the various objects is very easy. When I am planning a night of observing, I simply leaf through the book, find some interesting objects and then check to see if they will be out that night. I can then study his descriptions so that I will know what I am looking for. Fantastic! This is essential for any beginning astronomer and I dare say it would be an interesting read for non-observers as well.