An Intimate Look at the Night Sky

by Chet Raymo

On one level, An Intimate Look at the Night Sky is a unique star twenty-four beautiful star maps, created specifically for this book, cycle through the seasons and across the heavens, revealing what you can see with the naked eye throughout the year on a clear night in the northern hemisphere. Raymo's commentaries amplify the maps, offering intriguing details and tips on identifying stars, planets, and constellations. On another level, Chet Raymo challenges our imagination-to see what is unseeable in the universe, to perceive distance and size and shape that is inconceivable, to appreciate ever more fully our extraordinary place in the cosmos. His elegant essays on the heavens blend science and history, mythology and religion, making clear why he is one of the most insightful and passionate science writers of our time.

Genres: Astronomy, Science, Nonfiction, Space, Natural History, Nature

208 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2001

About the author

Chet Raymo (born September 17, 1936 in Chattanooga, Tennessee) is a noted writer, educator and naturalist. He is Professor Emeritus of Physics at Stonehill College, in Easton, Massachusetts. His weekly newspaper column Science Musings appeared in the Boston Globe for twenty years, and his musings can still be read online at www.sciencemusings.com.

His most famous book was the novel entitled The Dork of Cork, and was made into the feature length film Frankie Starlight. Raymo is also the author of Walking Zero, a scientific and historical account of his wanderings along the Prime Meridian in Great Britain.

Raymo was the recipient of the 1998 Lannan Literary Award for his Nonfiction work.

Reviews

[Victor Davis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Picked this little guy up at the library after getting a new telescope. It's a nice introduction to astronomy. Ironically, I knew most of the technical science, but nearly nothing about skywatching itself. The author prints season-specific maps and spends one page talking about the constellations & greek myths, and a second corresponding page talking about the nebulae, galaxies, binary star systems, etc, viewable in that part of the sky. That marriage makes skywatching very engaging, enabling the reader to really synthesize and remember what's where in the night sky.

[Juli Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

A dash of science, a dash of poetry, and a lot of wonder.

[Aprilleigh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautifully illustrated volume that covers the major objects in the night sky throughout the year. It’s targeted at Northern Hemisphere observers, of course, as the author lives and works in Massachusetts. In addition to telling you what you should look for during each season, he includes information about what those things meant to ancient observers, and stories they told about the constellations. The rest of the book includes information about the universe around us, from how scientists believe the universe began all the way to how it might end (don’t worry, if it ends at all, it won’t be for another 100 billion years). The true value of this book is the gentle introduction to the wonders of astronomy, which exceeds even the excellent illustrations.

That said, it’s of limited usefulness to the amateur astronomer because this is not a book that you would bring out into a dark field for a stargazing session. It is, however, simple enough that you could use it to plan your first forays and leave the book at home where there’s no chance of moisture damage. I strongly recommend a plastic planisphere (star finder) or an inexpensive one you can print out to construct yourself and replace as needed (google DIY planisphere).

[Billy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A referential exploration of the heavens replete with star maps for all seasons and musings on everything from the moon to the discovery of galaxies to the big bang.

[Cheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

“The title of this book is An Intimate Look at the Night Sky. But what kind of intimacy can one have with a universe of 100 billion galaxies, each galaxy containing one trillion stars, every star perhaps with planets? There are two ways to answer this question. First, close your eyes for a moment and bring to mind the big bang, the out-rushing snowstorm of galaxies, the seething stars, the whirling planets, everything revealed by telescopes. It’s all there, tucked into the synapses of our brains. We carry a universe in our heads. It doesn’t get more intimate than that. Second, the discovery of the universe of the galaxies is a human story, a story of human curiosity, human ingenuity, human courage. There is a little bit of Bruno, Galileo, Herschel, and Hubble in all of us: we are them, they are us.”

I am on a Chet Raymo binge: finished ‘The Path’ which I didn’t love, but wanted to try others: this, and Natural Prayers, and Written In Stone about the geology of the Northeast. This book takes all you have learned about astronomy and adds richness and elegance to why it is important. I love love that he has one page which has a picture of the stars and constellations labeled, and then the next page is not labeled, so you are already practicing looking at the sky live, and making the connections. It is so simple, yet effective, and makes learning the night sky easier. He brings magic to the night sky, or brings it out. Who can hardly wait for 2017, when there will be a total eclipse visible from the U.S. along the center from west to east, starting in Oregon and curving south, ending in South Carolina. I will have to travel to be there as it skips Colorado, but I will be there. It’s on Monday, August 21, so mark your calendars. Or maybe in 2024, starting in Mexico and curving north towards Maine. And so on.

” In Anton Chekhov’s play the Three Sisters, sister Masha refuses ‘to live and not know why the cranes fly, why children are born, why the stars are in the sky. Either you know and you’re alive or it’s all nonsense, all dust in the wind.’ Why? Why? The striving to know is what frees us from the bonds of self, said Einstein. It’s the striving to know, rather than our knowledge-which is always tentative and partial- that is important. Instead of putting computers in our elementary schools, we should take the children out into nature, away from those virtual worlds in which they spend unconscionable hours, and let them see an eclipsed Moon rising in the east, a pink pearl. Let them stand in a morning dawn and watch a slip of a comet fling its trail around the Sun…Let the children know. Let them know that nothing, nothing will find in the virtual world of e-games, television, or the Internet matters half as much as a glitter of strs on an inky sky, drawing our attention into the incomprehensible mystery of why the universe is here at all, and why we are here to observe it. The winter Milky Way rises in the east, one trillion individually invisible points of light, one trillion revelations of the Ultimate Mystery, conferring on the watcher a dignity, a blessedness, that confounds the dull humdrum of the commonplace and opens a window to infinity.”

[Adriana Kraft · Rating 5 out of 5]

In this lyrical book, physicist and professor Chet Raymo takes us on a profound journey through the visible night sky and the stories it reveals about the creation and history of the universe, our earth, and our very selves. With the voice of a Renaissance man, he pulls from our culture’s music, poetry, myth, and prose across the centuries to connect us with the constellations – stars from our own Milky Way galaxy – and the “deep space” phenomena from the farthest reaches of space and time. Organized by the seasonal changes in the sky, the book weaves simple instructions for locating stars and constellations with hard research and theoretical physics to explain what we are seeing when we look up at night. It may seem counterintuitive to talk about becoming intimate with something as vast as the stars in the sky, but this little book succeeds in creating an emotional connection as palpable as the dust of stars that makes up our physical bodies. I highly recommend this exquisite read.

[Eileen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Written in silky prose, this book really enforces the message that the human race shouldn't lose touch with our heritage of dark starry nights, without being preachy. Each chapter teaches the traditional "signs" that can be viewed in the sky as well as their history. It's a wonderful ready and truly encouraged me to find a dark field in order to observe the night's beautiful lights myself. Sadly that's a little hard these days thanks to cities and excessive use of light.

[Jenna Zarzycki · Rating 5 out of 5]

Little did I know that scientists could also be poets. This is an easy-to-understand beginning astronomy book. Beautiful pictures are interspersed with wonderful essays on the night sky and the universe. This wonderful book sparked my interest in stargazing and gave me the tools to find many fabulous constellations.

[Autumn Kotsiuba · Rating 3 out of 5]

"We sought a deeper sense that creation is still going on."

A neat introduction to astronomy. I enjoyed the plates showing different constellations, and the lessons were simple and understandable. Only problem is that it's already outdated; when this was written, Pluto was still a planet. Still, a cool guide for beginners.

[Christine · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is the almost unbelievable description of what is really happening out in space, how the stars and planets are created, and what we are all made of. It is easy to read, but scientific in nature. It is awe inspiring to try to understand the true nature, in detail, of creation.

[Terese · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am in love with this book. I got it from the library and renewed it so many times I might as well buy it. A nice beginners astronomy book that makes me feel even smaller than I am!

[Joe · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bought this book after hearing the author speak. It's a good general backyard astronomy book with seasonal maps of the brightest stars.

[Nick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Part useful introductory star guide, part very brief version of "A Short History of Nearly Everything". The author has a nice poetic perspective.

[ray foley]

awesome