Product Description
Why does the starlit sky hold such a profound fascination for us?
Perhaps because it is there that we encounter, commingled, the mystery of light and darkness two primal experiences connected with the beginning and end of human life.

Perhaps it comes from seeing the order, both overt and occult, in the movement of celestial spheres, with which we sense ourselves secretly involved.

Perhaps it is because we feel so small before the starry universe and in this way we begin to become aware within ourselves of the grand questions regarding our existence and our passing through life.

Why are there telescopes on the roof of the Pope's Summer home in Castel Gandolfo?

For more than 100 years, the Vatican has supported an astronomical observatory. But that should come as no surprise; from even before the Gregorian Reform of the Calendar in 1582, indeed dating back to the invention of the University (where studying astronomy was a requirement for anyone wanting a doctorate in philosophy or theology!) the Church has not only supported astronomical research...it has seen the study of the Heavens as a way of getting to know the Creator!

In honor of the International Year of Astronomy, the Vatican and its Observatory is delighted to present this small expression of support, filled with beautiful images from the Vatican's telescopes and wisdom from the Popes, to show that indeed. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Exalting beauty
An interesting history of the Vatican Observatory.The articles are informative and inspiring, the pictures are
exquisitely beautiful.

Haven't read it but my dad liked it
I bought this for my dad for Christmas and he seems to like it.I saw the author on The Colbert Report and thought, "hey, my dad is both a devout Catholic and an astronomy enthusiast".It's more of a coffee table book but I was impressed by the author and thought it would be right up Dad's alley.He tells me it was a great choice so I guess I can recommend it to anyone interested in astronomy, the Vatican, or a Catholic perspective on the Universe.

Copy Edit
I bought this book as a Christmas present for my wife.The book is beautiful as everybody else has indicated and my wife states that it is a good read and interesting. She likes the book as it combines her interests in science and faith

That being said, my wife who has considered becoming a copy editor, is constantly reading sentences to me from the book with the prefix, "What is wrong with this sentence?"In all honesty, *I* would have never picked up on the errors, but if you are a linguistic savant, you might be bothered by some of the issues that bothers her.Overall she is happy with the book, but as she put it, "it's a shame that such a beautiful book is tarnished by such poor copy editing."

Great blend of Astronomy and Religion
I will admit, I am a little bias.I am a practicing Roman Catholic and a self-proclaimed amateur astronomer.
However, I think this book is incredible.It was put together well with gorgeous pictures taken from the Vatican's observatory.
It does not force one to to believe one way or the other, but it does show how religion and science can co-exist in a
symbiotic relationship....it blends the two, well.

I would definitely recommend this for anyone who practices their faith regardless if you are Catholic.

The Heaven's Proclaim
I recently received an e-mail from Amazon.com inviting me to write a review for a book I had purchased from them, "The Heavens Proclaim."I am delighted to oblige. 1.) because it's a great book. 2.) because it's edited by my son, Brother Guy Consolmagno of the Vatican Observatory.

As a collection of articles on various aspects of astronomy by a dozen astronomers, the book is the equivalent of an overview college course on the subject. It also explains the Vatican's centuries-old interest in Astronomy.The book is a large coffee-table tome, beautifully printed and stunningly illistrated.it cost me $26 from Amazon. And Guy's tuition at MIT. ... Read more

Product Description

This is the book to tell the intermediate-level amateur astronomer what he needs to know about observatories. It draws on the author’s practical experience and that of many other experienced amateur astronomers.

It is an ideal complement to Patrick Moore’s More Small Astronomical Observatories which is a compendium of ideas for different observatory designs. Setting-up a Small Observatory covers the details of design, siting and construction once a basic type has been decided upon.

It is written in a way that is equally applicable to the USA and UK (where there are slightly different building regulations) and deals with matters that are basic to building and commissioning any amateur observatory. Uniquely, David Arditti also considers the aesthetics of amateur observatories – fitting them in with family and neighbors, and maybe disguising them as more common garden buildings if necessary.

Every amateur astronomer who wants a purpose-built observatory (and that is most of them!) will find this book absolutely invaluable both during the planning and the construction stages.

Customer Reviews (4)

Lots of really good anecdotal information!
I totally enjoyed this book! There were many helpful tips and observations from authors that have "been there and done that!" One of the other reviewers noted that he thought this was "padded" with extraneous information. I would disagree because I found much of the surrounding information thoughtful and additive to my project. Ultimately, some of the "additional information" has already saved me some serious money! The topic is well described and has some brilliant ideas. I am buying a second copy for my son's project. Perhaps it will cover an item or two that was not obvious and save an expensive mistake!

Too much extraneous information?
Well, the book definitely provided the information it promised. I feel much more prepared to build my own observatory now. But it strayed from the stated subject often and filled up pages with astronomy and telescope information that is available elsewhere. I got the feeling that it was padded - or maybe just mistitled. Maybe it should have been called "Setting-Up a Small Observatory: From Concept to Construction and a Bunch of Other Stuff You Probably Already Know Since You Are Considering an Observatory of Your Own Anyway".

Don't hesitate to buy it for the information you need.Just be prepared for a bit of wandering.

Good book
If you are looking for information about how built an amateur observatory, here you have all you need to know.

Great Place to Start
This is a great basic introductory book.If you're looking for ideas and don't want to re-invent the wheel, and make the same mistakes that others have made when THEY made their observatory, buy this book.I highly recommend it; easy reading, with good author support!5 of 5 stars. ... Read more

Product Description

My Heavens! charts the progress of the author’s own substantial observatory (with additional material from amateur constructors of large observatories elsewhere) from conception, through design, planning and construction, to using an observatory of the kind that all amateur astronomers would aspire to own.

This book tells the “warts and all” story of small beginnings in amateur astronomy, leading to the construction of a “top of the range” observatory at a house on the edge of a country village between Oxford and London. The author is a qualified building surveyor, and looks at building the observatory from his own professional perspective. There were of course many errors, problems, technical and organizational difficulties along the way, and the author never shies away from admitting his mistakes – and in doing so he reduces the chances of others falling into the same traps. Comparisons are made with similar large projects in the USA, taking a look at the differences and similarities in planning and building regulations, and in construction methods on both sides of the Atlantic.

Eventually an observatory materialized, set up to facilitate the taking of very high quality images of the deep sky on those special days of best seeing.

The story doesn’t end with the construction of the observatory, but goes on to describe the author’s choice of equipment, setting it up, and his own techniques for obtaining superb astronomical images like the ones he shows in his book.

Customer Reviews (1)

Amateur Astronomers and Their Observatories
If you are considering going beyond the reasonable, and would like to build your own observatory, this is the book for you.As a matter of fact, it's an entertaining account of the experience of several avid amateurs.The style is in general wryly humorous, as you would expect when you consider what the author is reporting on: an over-the-top pursuit of an absorbing and potentially expensive hobby.

There is a lot of detail, perhaps too much for the reader who cannot hope to duplicate the author's project.But I enjoyed the account very much. ... Read more

Product Description
Almost every serious amateur astronomer knows the benefit of having a fixed observatory of some sort - it saves a vast amount of time and effort during every observing session - and this book provides the necessary help. More Small Astronomical Observatories details the methods and techniques employed by non-professional astronomers from all over the world, providing a wonderful resource for anyone wishing to build a small observatory of almost any kind. It's a fun read, too. Not only that, but a free PC-format CD-ROM is included, containing the entire first book (now out of print) - you get two books for the price of one! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

more small astronnomical observatories
It a good book but it is outto date ,it is a good think who some one make a new book for this subject astronomical observatories amateur...

A Wealth of Ideas!
Sir Patrick Moore adds another wonderful book to his many!Anyone sincerely interested in configuring and erecting a custom observatory would find this invaluable.The initial offering is now out of print, but the editors and Sir Moore have kindly included a CD rendition of it.

Good for giving ideas
This book is not a step-by-step guide. Moore never says it would be. It allows you to see what others have built and get ideas for your own observatory - what is a better/different way to do what I want. An added bonus is that his first book (Small Astronomical Observatories) is included as a CD in the back (I had been looking for it for a while with no luck).
Most observatories are going to be of simple construction. If you can drive a nail and cut a piece of wood, you are well on your way. A bit of cement work and you are 99% there. I used information from 4 units to design my own. Yes, some of the designs are on the internet and he gives web addresses where they exists.
It meets my needs for information and I would not hesitate to suggest this book to anyone thinking about building a small observatory.

more small astronomical observatories
This book is as if you had a... tour through a garden of private observatories. There is very little technical content to be gleamed if you were wanting to make your own observatory and how to control it. Most of the material that is there, can be easily found in minutes on the internet. If I could give a lower rating I would. It was a waste of my money ... Read more

Product Description

Almost every amateur astronomer who has taken the pursuit to its second level aspires to a fixed, permanent housing for his telescope, permitting its rapid and comfortable use and avoiding hours of setting-up time for each observing session. A roll-off roof observatory is the simplest and by far the most popular observatory design for today’s practical astronomers.

Building a Roll-off Roof Observatory is unique, covering all aspects of designing a roll-off roof observatory: planning the site, requirements for viewing, conforming to by-laws, and orientation of the structure. The chapters outline step-by-step construction of a typical building, and the accompanying CD-R provides complete, professional, detailed diagrams for each phase of construction.

The author is both an amateur astronomer and professional landscape architect, and thus is almost uniquely qualified to write this fully-detailed book . A professionally designed roll-off observatory could cost as much as $3000 just for the plans – which are provided free with Building a Roll-off Roof Observatory!

Real, existing buildings have been built from these plan-sets, with photographs to show how they turned out. At present there is no published book with the same degree of detail and expertise that this text offers the amateur astronomer. Three sets of scale plans are provided on the CD-R that accompanies the book. Full-size prints of the plans are available from the author, along with a bespoke design service if needed.

Customer Reviews (2)

Observatory review
This is a great source of information about the subject. It is well illustrated and the text correctly references the pictures. There is helpful information about location, design, and other things you might not have though about. I highly reccomend this book to anyone considering building a backyard observatory. It also comes with a CD that contains all the illustrations in the text along with detailed plans for construction.

For Those Interested in Building Their Own Observatory
If you own a large telescope, you'll want an observatory for it so you won't have to set it up every time you want to use it.(You know what I mean!) If you have plenty of money, there are many nice observatories to choose from, but if you are on a budget, then building a roll-off roof observatory is probably your best option for utility and cost.

Hick's book is based to a large extent on his own observatory, but the general principles and advice that he gives can be transferred to other designs.The book is well-written, clear and with pictures and drawings.I took off one star because it is focused on one design - the author's own observatory, but that should not deter anyone that is interested in the topic.His design serves as an example to start at.If you are considering possibly building your own roll-off roof observatory then this book should be on your shelf.(You should also check out [...] for more information on roll-off roofs.)

... Read more

Product Description
In Small Astronomical Observatories, Patrick Moore has collected descriptions of amateur and small professional observatories currently in use in Europe and America, showing how many astronomers have built their own observatory, often with effective and sometimes extraordinary improvisations to reduce the cost. There is a photograph of each, along with details of its construction and a foreword written by Patrick Moore. In addition to providing a fascinating study for its own sake, Small Astronomical Observatories offers a unique fund of ideas and practical details for anyone who wants to build an amateur or small professional observatory. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

some good,some not.
Info in book ok for some.I live in
a housing tract on the out skirts
of a small city.not much help to
me.

Lots of options to help you decide on an observatory for you
'Small Astronomical Observatories' is not your ordinary astro book.It shows you a number of different observatory designs, but assumes you already have knowledge of key construction concepts.Spherical andpolygonal domes, roll off roofs and some unusual designs are included inthis book (which were built by amateur astronomers).There are even blueprint type diagrams for a few of the designs to help you get started andmake your own design decisions. Well worth buying.

Cover very much in little depth
Has several different observatory design ideas, but lacks depth and details.Is good if you aren't sure exactly what you want to build, and want to get an idea of possibilities.Some chapters have good tips on avoiding problems and mistakes made by builders during construction, but I found the book lacking in material.I wish I could recommend a different/better book, but I never found one.Unfortunately, this is the top of a shallow pile... ... Read more

Product Description
Finding all the fascinating scientific sites to visit throughout America can be a daunting task. This guidebook does all the work for you. The first in a series of travel books that will celebrate science and technology in America, Astronomy and Space Exploration describes astronomy and space-related museums and attractions that conventional travel guides tend to ignore. So, gas up the car, grab some snacks for the road, and get started on the voyage. Written in clear, easy-to-read language, Astronomy and Space Exploration lists more than 50 of the most important and intriguing astronomical and space-related sites in the United States. The book encompasses both popular and obscure places of interest, all of which are open to the public. Grouping the attractions by theme such as Native American astronomy, optical and radio telescopes, NASA and space exploration, and space rocks Duane S. Nickell provides a scientific and historical overview of each theme followed by detailed descriptions of the related sites within that theme. With over 40 illustrations, the book gives readers a visual understanding of what they will experience at most of the sites. For those readers who want to use the book as a trip planner, Nickell also includes a state-by-state listing of the attractions and identifies must-see exhibits at many of the space museums featured. Travelers and armchair tourists alike will be entertained by the illustrations and scientific descriptions of these out of this world attractions. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Can't wait to take some trips
I loved this book, and I look forward to future vacations where I can include a site or two that are mentioned in the book.The chapters cover Native American astronomy sites, optical telescopes, radio telescopes, planetariums, NASA-related sites, space museums, and sites related to a select few people that are important in the world of astronomy.Each location includes a description of what you'll find at the site, and practical details like how to get there and the hours that the location is open.While this is not a comprehensive review of every possible astronomy-related location that exists, it seems like a good beginning.

Lots of good sites to visit, but some omissions
I like this book over-all, it has a lot of great information about visiting observatories and science locations. For example, I've been to Mauna Kea and Palomar Mountain, and I learned some new information about visiting them from this book.

Each site is introduced with a good description of the historical and scientific character of the facility, and there are pointers to special features or easily missed displays that are worth hunting down.

As a Bay Area resident, I have a major gripe: While the book lists Ames Research Center in Mountain View and Lick Observatory near San Jose, it ignores Chabot Space and Science Center in Oakland. This is puzzling, since both Ames and Lick have very limited options for tours by the public - Lick is open during the day, but only has night time viewing on a few nights each year. Ames has a nice visitor center, but the only time you can get inside the gates is for the Air Show (or to film a MythBusters episode).

To contrast, Chabot is open to the public most days of the year, and has public telescope viewing every clear Friday or Saturday night. The planetarium and Mega-Dome theater are world class. For telescopes, Chabot's 20" refractor and 36" reflector dwarf the telescopes available at most public observatories, including some that are praised in this book.

The author asks for suggestions for future editions, I know he'll be receiving some from Chabot fans...

The book includes a section on visiting Roswell and Area 51, this is good for amusement value. There are also pointers for visiting some of the great space related museums and NASA facilities. The last chapter is a helpful list of ways have fun with space science - I can vouch for the joys of star parties and solar eclipse travel, but I will have to delay the sub-orbital flight until the prices come down.

Overall I think this is a useful and interesting book, but make a point to check out the Chabot center if you are looking for astronomy in the San Francisco Bay area!

Excellent book
This is a terrific book.I really enjoyed reading about the history and meaning behind each of the sites listed in the book.I look forward to other books in this series. ... Read more

Product Description
The impact of large radio telescopes on the progress ofastronomical research in the past, present and future is the subjectof twelve essays, of interest to both the layman and the professionalastronomer. Current research in different fields and visions of whatmay be achieved with future observational possibilities are found nextto contributions containing historical notes on Dutch radio astronomyand the scientific highlights of a quarter-century's work with theWesterbork Synthesis Radio Telescope. Major upgrades in progress will soon turn the WSRT into a morepowerful and significantly more versatile instrument. Looking furtherahead, plans for a new-generation telescope, a Square-Kilometer-Array, promise enormous advances in many areas of astronomy, amongthem research on pulsars, on gas in the early universe and incosmology. ... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (1)

Not the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Universe
This book provides a concise (perhaps too concise) and richly illustrated description of the Universe, starting with the Earth and finishing with speculations about how life originated.I would like to think that this book doesn't include anything I wasn't vaguely familiar with before, but I found it useful to have it all in the one place.The illustrations are of high quality, and pretty to look at, just on their own.The shortness of the book is a problem; there's only about 230 pages, and the illustrations take up many of the pages, so the statements of fact tend to be a little terse.For example, on page 48, it is stated about the Earth; 'By 400 million years ago, the fossil record shows that it was spinning once every 22 hours,..."I can see why it would have been spinning faster, but I can't understand how the fossil record would have shown this, so it's obvious I am going to have to do some more reading about this. ... Read more

Product Description
This volume is produced from digital images created through the University of Michigan University Library's large-scale digitization efforts. The Library seeks to preserve the intellectual content of items in a manner that facilitates and promotes a variety of uses. The digital reformatting process results in an electronic version of the original text that can be both accessed online and used to create new print copies. The Library also understands and values the usefulness of print and makes reprints available to the public whenever possible. This book and hundreds of thousands of others can be found in the HathiTrust, an archive of the digitized collections of many great research libraries. For access to the University of Michigan Library's digital collections, please see http://www.lib.umich.edu and for information about the HathiTrust, please visit http://www.hathitrust.org ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

The Star Splitters - NASA SP-466
This is an excellent historical account of the behind the scenes details of NASA's HEAO missions.The author is not just a writer assigned to write the book, but a scientist as well.Although many scientists or engineers that write about their projects are too technical, Wallace H. Tucker, has a good balance between the technical and layman's writing style.Although there are places in the book that have become out dated, due to new observations, it still gives one a good starting point into the world of High Energy Astronomy and the methods used in the HEAO spacecraft to study this portion of the Universe.

S. Brotherton

A Very Informative Little Book
This book published by NASA (NASA Special Publication, NASA SP-451) in early 1984 describes the High Energy Astronomy Observatory (HEAO) Missions which were developed to examine and analyze the nature of the high energy universe, stellar radiation and galactic radiation.Some of the topics covered in this book include creative violence, stellar explosions, cosmic rays, superbubbles, stellar coronas, collapsed stars, neutron stars, degenerate dwarf stars, black holes, X-ray images of galaxies, galactic nuclei, spiral galaxies, galactic clusters, the mystery of the missing mass, and cosmic fire.The book also covers the design of the mission, the spacecraft and the spacecraft instruments.

It is important to note that while this book has been out of print for many years; many excellent quality used copies of this book in hardback are available cost between $10 - 25.
... Read more

Product Description
Quasars and active galaxies are the most powerful emitters of radiation in the universe. Modern radio telescope arrays have shown that the ultimate energy source resides in the central few parsecs of the galactic nucleus, and powers the emitting regions by way of two oppositely-directed relativistic jets of energy. This volume presents the latest observations and theories of these remarkable objects. Topics discussed include superluminal motions, the physics of jets and shock fronts in jets, related optical observations, and cosmic evolution. Particular attention is given to the "unified theories," which attempt to show that many of the phenomena in powerful extragalactic objects are different aspects of a single, basic mechanism; the main difference in their appearance is a result of their different orientation with respect to the observer. ... Read more

Product Description
The Einstein X-ray satellite was launched ten years ago. As a result of this one mission, X-ray astronomy was transformed from a specialized branch of astronomy to a field relevant to virtually all areas of astrophysics today. This book is the record of a symposium at Harvard University. ... Read more

Product Description
The founding of the Dudley Observatory at Albany, N.Y., in 1852 was a milestone in humanity's age-old quest to understand the heavens. As the best equipped astronomical observatory in the U.S. led by the first American to hold a Ph.D. in astronomy, Benjamin Athorp Gould Jr. the observatory helped pioneer world-class astronomy in America. It also proclaimed Albany's status as a major national center of culture, knowledge and affluence. This book explores the story of  the Dudley Observatory as a 150 year long episode in civic astronomy. The story ranges from a bitter civic controversy to a venture into space, from the banks of the Hudson River to the highlands of Argentinia. It is a unique glimpse as a path not taken, a way of doing science once promising, now vanished. As discoveries by the Dudley Observatory's astronomers, especially its second director Lewis Boss, made significant contributions to the modern vision of our Milky Way galaxy as a rotating spiral of more tha a million stars, the advance of astornomy left that little observatory behind. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

History of Science in America: For the Serious
George Wise did a great service in producing a marvelous book that will be read probably by few, yet fills and important gap in the history of science for the public in America.There is no doubt that, more than any other country, America values an educated lay public, and the efforts of the citizens of Albany, New York, to create a world-class observatory in the 1850s is known by few.However, this volume, more encompassing than "Elites in Conflict", shows on the one hand how intense the struggle can be to professionalize a scientific field on the one hand, and make it accessible and appealing to the public, on the other.With access to archival material necessary to make such a broad ranging survey, George Wise has distilled the over 150-year history of the Dudley Observatory into a fairly brief but well-documented study.

His history of Civic Astronomy with Dudley Observatory as the case study, does not answer the question as to whether these two goals can ever be reconciled.However, I am quite certain that he has shown that, if it can be accomplished at all, it will only be possible in a free and democratic society.He leaves us with the unanswerable question, and, I believe, with the hope that that struggle will continue and not be abandoned. ... Read more

Product Description
This collection of twenty-four papers examines the numerous ways in which the stars influenced our ancestors' view of the world. The papers are divided into five categories: Archaeoastronomical theory; Calendars in artefacts, folklore, and literature; History and iconography of the constellations; Astronomy in art, mythology, and literature; and Orientations and their interpretations. From Stonehenge and Ramesside star clocks to the use of ropes in astronomy, and even an Orion-based pregnancy calendar, this volume covers a vast array of periods and places. The papers were presented at the ninth annual conference of the Société Européenne pour l'Astronomie dans la Culture (SEAC) in Stockholm, 2001 ... Read more