Simply Astronomy

Simply

by D.K. Publishing

The simplest guide to astronomy and stargazing!

Grasping astronomy has never been easier. The awe of the night sky will soon turn into knowledge of the constellations, planets, and astrological phenomena!

Bold graphics and easy-to-understand text make this visual guide the perfect introduction to astronomy and stargazing for those who have little time but a big thirst for knowledge. Inside you'll find:

- Simple, easy-to-understand graphics that help to explain astronomy, space, and the night sky in a clear, visual way
- The latest astronomical information on black holes, gravitational waves, the origin of the Universe, and the planets of the Solar System
- User-friendly star-charts that guide you through the sky using brighter stars as "signposts" to locate harder-to-see objects
- Essential advice on the practicalities of stargazing - from observing with the naked eye to using telescopes

Each pared-back entry covers the essentials more clearly than ever before. The opening chapters provide an introduction to the Universe, a visual tour of the Solar System, and a guide to more distant objects such as stars and galaxies.

Along the way, concepts such as the Big Bang, gravity, and space-time are introduced and explained. Later chapters describe how to navigate around the night sky and introduce some must-see constellations, complete with simple star charts.

Whether you are a complete beginner, or simply want a jargon-free reference to astronomy and stargazing, this essential guide is packed with everything you need to understand the basics quickly and easily.

Genres: Science, Nonfiction, Astronomy, Space, Physics

160 pages, Hardcover

Published December 21, 2021

About the author

Dorling Kindersley (DK) is a British multinational publishing company specializing in illustrated reference books for adults and children in 62 languages. It is part of Penguin Random House, a consumer publishing company jointly owned by Bertelsmann SE & Co. KGaA and Pearson PLC. Bertelsmann owns 53% of the company and Pearson owns 47%.

Established in 1974, DK publishes a range of titles in genres including travel (including Eyewitness Travel Guides), arts and crafts, business, history, cooking, gaming, gardening, health and fitness, natural history, parenting, science and reference. They also publish books for children, toddlers and babies, covering such topics as history, the human body, animals and activities, as well as licensed properties such as LEGO, Disney and DeLiSo, licensor of the toy Sophie la Girafe. DK has offices in New York, London, Munich, New Delhi, Toronto and Melbourne.

Source: Wikipedia.

Reviews

[Fatima Sarder · Rating 5 out of 5]

Illustrated with beautiful infographics, Simply Astronomy provides a bare-bones, basic guide and explanation to our Solar System, Milky Way galaxy and beyond. It also includes tips on how to stargaze and provides a handy star-chart and ways to track the constellations in the sky.

If I had a nit-pick, it would be the lack of actual, space probe photographs. Besides this, the book is beyond amazing.

[Barbara · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice,short book about astronomy if you don’t want to invest a lot of time and just want to grasp the basics.

It’s got nice graphs and pictures that help explain the science in a digestible way.

Favourite quotes:

“Some stars change in brightness,following a cycle that can last from fractions of a second to several years.Others change unpredictably.In these variable stars,as they are known,the fluctuations may be due to physical changes in the star that cause it to emit more or less light (an intrinsic variable) or to external factors such as a companion star or orbiting planet blocking their light (an extrinsic variable). An exploding star such as a nova or a supernova is a cataclysmic variable.”

“Inferior orbit: An inferior planet is most visible at its greatest eastern or western elongation.This means it is at its furthest from the sun in the sky.

Superior orbit: Superior planets orbit further out from the sun than earth does. A superior planet is most visible when at opposition,when earth lies between it and the sun.”

[James]

This book made me think about how much we know about the universe but how much there is still to learn. Despite all of our advancements in technology, “The universe has not given up all of its secrets”. The writer cleverly uses pictures and infographics to explain complicated ideas like ripples in space time and the universe expanding. It is important for us to understand about our solar system and universe because if we are to understand more in the future we first need to teach the next generation about what we have learned so far. Astronomers like Steven Hawking could only develop his theories with the help of earlier men like Galileo. Reading this book reminded me of a night sky tour I did on Great Barrier Island and it was awe-inspiring. It was great to look up at the sky and just think about how big it was and how small we are in comparison. Little things I was stressing about like grades and the results of the next Liverpool game disappeared because it felt like it didn't matter anymore. A fascinating figure in this book was that there are “as many galaxies in the observable universe as there are stars in our galaxy”. This book shows that we will never know everything about the universe but we should keep pushing ourselves to learn more.

[Bella]

Excellent illustrations. Explains very complex topics as simply as possible. It is, expectedly, very broad, a taster of various phenomena for you to consider what you'd like to learn more about. I'm an adult with a Bachelor of Computer Science, and I still couldn't follow everything, but that's down to the complexity of the subject matter and that you jump from topic to topic (e.g. from splitting light to the birth of the universe).

I skipped the bit on constellations, but otherwise highly recommended for anyone wanting a taster of the areas of astronomy and the universe that they might like to find out more about.

[Nichole · Rating 2 out of 5]

Am I a master of astronomy? No. Could I pass on some of the concepts in this book? Also no. In fact, I may have more questions now than I did before. Ugh.

[Emma · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting and fun pictures, but the brain one was much easier to digest. Some of this was a little less explained and just harder to read (specifically when you had to turn it to its sides).

[Gordon Saunders · Rating 5 out of 5]

Stellar Simplicity and Clarity

Having just finished reading two “scholarly” books on astronomy, I found myself thinking to these other authors, “Why didn’t you just say this?” It was the perfect companion to books that chronicled the history of cosmic discoveries and the complexity of tht night sky. I recommend that everyone who wishes they knew something about the sky they’gazing into with awe tuck this book under their arm and use it as a guide-that’s stargazers from 9 to 99.

[Daria · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a beautiful little book with gorgeous graphics. I loved the simplicity that doesn't make the text childish but helps you figure out what topics in astronomy are worth delving deeper into. I did not care for the detailed overview of the constellations, but perhaps folks with better access to dark night skies could have a better opportunity to apply these detailed instructions. Or perhaps I just envy such folks.

[Hal · Rating 5 out of 5]

A simple book as the title indicates and delightful as well. This book is short to the point, very understandable, with great illustrations. It also is a nice review of many things man will all be aware of but serves as a reminder of how incredibly fascinating and mysterious in many ways our universe is. It rounds out with a number of pages on observing constellations that is helpful and fun.

[Stacey]

A great beginner friendly overview of astronomy. Accessible and informative and in a fun, creative way. This book also has some stunning designs and illustrations/artwork inside to complement the information about astronomy. I really liked the progression of information--it was logical and easy to follow, building on concepts as it progressed.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great simple intro to the stars. The illustrations were quite clear and helpful for when concepts went a bit over my head. Quick easy read. Makes me want to go outside and stare up at the stars. It's incredible the amount of information we have about the universe despite how gigantic it is...

[Aastha · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun read. Simple enough understand as a layperson and some really stunning two page infographic illustrations. -1 star for the design preceded readability and intuitive flow of the page which made me re read a bunch of page because the intro and content were in a weird order.

[X · Rating 5 out of 5]

WOW! I want to read all books like this! Graphic, short to the point, clever, creative, innovative, smart, genius, everything you need in one spot, vocabulary, jargon, story, dull color visuals, yummy! NO stupid short-sided opinions! I can't get enough of it!

[Adrian Ruth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun! But simple and a little tough to read physically. This isn’t a traditional book but you will learn a good bit and know what you want to look into next!

[Sampurna Ray · Rating 4 out of 5]

Most of the book is pretty basic. However, the section at the end on stargazing and constellations was solid.

[Molly Burke · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amazing!! It gave me so much information about planets, constellations, and astronomy in general. If you want to know the basics of astronomy, this is the book for you! (p.s. - great images!)

[Starship · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cool book. Loved the pictures. Some parts I felt could've been explained more, like nuclear fusion and supernovas. Feels a bit more like a coffee table book.
Good introduction to the topic though

[Ruth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Astronomy for people who know nothing about astronomy. I think it’s meant for older children but I have no issue picking up a book like that.

[Bruce Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

155 easy to read pages that cover the current understanding of the universe. Terrific illustrations help explain the Big Bang, black holes, gravitational waves and much more.

[Emma · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really like how the information is displayed in this book.

[Bettie Furminger · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was OK, simple it was. I liked the illustrations though and the clever use of graphics to explain theory.

[Clara Fetzner · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book and it is one of my favorites it’s so good to teach people about astronomy and space related stuff. If you read this book I hope you enjoy it as much as I did😊

[Woffa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Semplice, comprensibile e assolutamente bello

[Gizem Çam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short and basic book about astronomy with helpful illustrations. I recommend it to anyone who wants to learn about the characteristics of planets in a clear and systematic way.