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Astronomy Demystified
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THE FAST AND PAINLESS WAY TO GRASP THE FUNDAMENTALS OF BASIC ASTRONOMY . . . WITHOUT FORMAL TRAINING Want to master astronomy or aerospace engineering but are intimidated by the complex formulas and equations? Tried other self-teaching guides but were turned off by the dry, complicated presentation? Problem solved! Astronomy Demystified is a totally different, very entertaining, and amazingly effective way to learn the mathematics, fundamentals, and general concepts of astronomy. With Astronomy Demystified , you ease into the subject one simple step at a time – at your own speed. Unlike most other books on the topic, general concepts are presented first – and the details follow. In order to make the learning process as clear and simple as possible, heavy-duty math, formulas, and equations are kept at a minimum. THIS UNIQUE, SELF-TEACHING TEXT
* Questions at the end of every chapter and section to reinforce learning and pinpoint your weaknesses
* A 100-question final exam for self-assessment
* Tips on how to get the most out of observational tools such as binoculars and telescopes
* Discussion of the special problems associated with observing the sky at “invisible wavelengths”
* An easy way to understand the math involved in astronomy Simple enough for a beginner but comprehensive enough for an advanced student, Astronomy Demystified is your short cut to understanding the heavens.
THE FAST AND PAINLESS WAY TO GRASP THE FUNDAMENTALS OF BASIC ASTRONOMY . . . WITHOUT FORMAL TRAINING Want to master astronomy or aerospace engineering but are intimidated by the complex formulas and equations? Tried other self-teaching guides but were turned off by the dry, complicated presentation? Problem solved! Astronomy Demystified is a totally different, very entertaining, and amazingly effective way to learn the mathematics, fundamentals, and general concepts of astronomy. With Astronomy Demystified , you ease into the subject one simple step at a time – at your own speed. Unlike most other books on the topic, general concepts are presented first – and the details follow. In order to make the learning process as clear and simple as possible, heavy-duty math, formulas, and equations are kept at a minimum. THIS UNIQUE, SELF-TEACHING TEXT
* Questions at the end of every chapter and section to reinforce learning and pinpoint your weaknesses
* A 100-question final exam for self-assessment
* Tips on how to get the most out of observational tools such as binoculars and telescopes
* Discussion of the special problems associated with observing the sky at “invisible wavelengths”
* An easy way to understand the math involved in astronomy Simple enough for a beginner but comprehensive enough for an advanced student, Astronomy Demystified is your short cut to understanding the heavens.
575 pages, Paperback
First published August 1, 2002
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
October 9, 2019
Not a bad course, but maybe just a bit overly wordy in sections? That's coming from someone who has been looking at a Physics text book A LOT lately though, ha.
November 25, 2023
Stan Gibilisco does it again with Astronomy Demystified. It is a primer on astronomy and covers everything you need to know. There is an impressive breadth of knowledge in the book.
Gibilisco begins by talking about how we map stars and other celestial objects. I wondered about this process since the Earth is a sphere along with its surroundings.
The book is heavy on science but does not rely too heavily on jargon. It describes what we know about the universe and how we obtained that knowledge. For example, it discusses the various theories concerning Solar System formation. Furthermore, it describes the different types of telescopes and methods used to examine the stars.
The book is older, with a 2003 publication date, so Pluto is still included in the planets. The book has a little imaginary sequence that describes a trip to the surfaces of Venus and Mars. There is a scene depicting an extraterrestrial civilization mapping the Earth, as well.
The book’s final chapter has advice for buying a telescope and what specifications to look for in the instrument.
I enjoyed the book. Thanks for reading my review, and see you next time.
Gibilisco begins by talking about how we map stars and other celestial objects. I wondered about this process since the Earth is a sphere along with its surroundings.
The book is heavy on science but does not rely too heavily on jargon. It describes what we know about the universe and how we obtained that knowledge. For example, it discusses the various theories concerning Solar System formation. Furthermore, it describes the different types of telescopes and methods used to examine the stars.
The book is older, with a 2003 publication date, so Pluto is still included in the planets. The book has a little imaginary sequence that describes a trip to the surfaces of Venus and Mars. There is a scene depicting an extraterrestrial civilization mapping the Earth, as well.
The book’s final chapter has advice for buying a telescope and what specifications to look for in the instrument.
I enjoyed the book. Thanks for reading my review, and see you next time.
April 23, 2020
Of all the basic astronomy books I’ve read – and that’s at least a handful – this is by far the worst. I hope author Stan Gibilisco is better at writing electronics texts than he is at astronomy, because at least in this realm his work is disorganized, frequently condescending and occasionally downright inaccurate. I intended to use this work as a quick refresher before moving on to some more specific astronomy books, but by the end I was more annoyed than enlightened. Even the graphics are bad; there isn’t a single photo in the whole thing (a serious minus in an astronomy book), and almost all the illustrations look like they were thrown together in five minutes or less using an outdated copy of CorelDraw. People who find that they don’t get much from the intro books written by Levy, North, Hathaway and the like could conceivably find this scatter-brained mix of math, trivia and poorly-written sci fi to their taste. But for everyone else, seek elsewhere for a door into this fascinating field.
July 29, 2016
I read this book thinking it will be as informative as Design Patterns from the Head First series. I guess I should have known better than to expect the same standards of two books from different collections.
This isn't really a particularly good book. A lot of the information here were either out of date, nothing new, or inaccurate (particularly when it comes to numbers). But it is helpful in the sense that it organizes one's knowledge of astronomy. I'll give it a 3, and not a 1 or 2, because there were some things in this book that I didn't know before, or I didn't know I knew (if that makes any sense), but I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone.
This isn't really a particularly good book. A lot of the information here were either out of date, nothing new, or inaccurate (particularly when it comes to numbers). But it is helpful in the sense that it organizes one's knowledge of astronomy. I'll give it a 3, and not a 1 or 2, because there were some things in this book that I didn't know before, or I didn't know I knew (if that makes any sense), but I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews