A star atlas and reference handbook for students and amateurs

by Arthur P. Norton

First time in paperback! "Once in a blue moon a book appears to dramatically and forever change its subject; in short, the work becomes an indispensable resource for generations. "Norton's Star Atlas" is such a work".--Leif J. Robinson, Editor-in-Chief, "Sky & Telescope".

Genres: Astronomy, Reference, Science

Hardcover

First published January 1, 1910

About the author

When a school boy Arthur Philip Norton was given a telescope by his great-grandfather. Thus began his life-long interest in astronomy.

Norton chose a career as a teacher, which saw him take several posts over the course of his professional life. In 1910, however, his life took a more public direction. This was the year in which he was voted into the British Astronomical Association, and the year in which the first edition of The Star Atlas and Reference Handbook (later to be named Norton's Star Atlas and Reference Handbook) was published.

The Handbook was intended to be a companion to several contemporary astronomical guides, but it quickly proved itself to be a popular and valuable resource in itself. Norton oversaw five editions of the Handbook, through to 1933. The Handbook is now a century old, and it is still popular with amateur astronomers.

Norton was considered a good and engaging teacher by his students. He was also known his mechanical skills, having designed and constructed several complex devices, including clocks, and for his sense of humour—and his lisp.

Asteroid 3869 Norton, is named in his memory.

Reviews

[Stacy Lohman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Type of Resource: Handbooks

Description:
This is considered to be the most famous star atlas in the world - known by generations of amateur astronomers as simply "Nortons". It is designed to be a leading reference handbook for astronomers. The handbook has been revised and redesigned by a team of astronomers, bringing the information fully up-to-date and reflecting new and exciting developments in observational astronomy. The star maps have been re-plotted to a new level of accuracy and legibility for the Standard Epoch of 2000.0, using state-of-the-art computer techniques specially developed for this 20th edition.
Call Number: R 523

Review: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...

[Aprilleigh · Rating 3 out of 5]

This reference volume starts with not quite 50 pages of useful information about celestial coordinates, dates, time, astronomical instruments (including binoculars and the different types of telescopes, as well as mounts and a variety of common accessories), and imaging.

This is followed by another 50ish pages of information about the objects in our own solar system, including the sun, the planets and their moons, as well as comets, meteors, and artificial satellites. Of particular interest is a stunning four-page map of the moon’s Earth-facing side along with four accompanying pages of features identified by name and location.

Next comes about 30 pages worth of information about stars, nebulae and galaxies, including stellar evolution and galaxy classification, and a series of 18 star charts (includes stars of magnitude 6 or brighter) and accompanying tables.

This is an amazing reference work, and reasonably affordable as star atlases go. For use out in the field with your telescope, however, I think there are much better options (the binding, for example, should be spiral for ease of use). This is the kind of reference you use to plan a viewing session at home.

[tgrantl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not optional for amateur astronomers. Not as detailed as Uranometria, but perfect for casual observation with binoculars or small scopes.

[Iain Watson]

Norton's Star Atlas and Reference Handbook, 20th Edition (2003)