A Stargazing Program for Beginners: A Pocket Field Guide

Astronomer's Pocket Field Guide

by Jamie Carter

Preface.- Part The Wide-Eyed View.- Where Am I?- Soaked in Stars.- The Plane Truth.- Part A Closer Look.- The Galaxy Revealed.- Binocular Tours and the ISS.- The Night Shift.- Deep South.- Moonrise, Meteors and the Milky Way.- Part Deep Sky.- Third Layer.- Andromeda Galaxy.- Return of the Kings.- One Orbit Complete.- Part Dark Sky Destinations.- Upside-Down Stargazing.- Eclipses and Aurora.- Finding Dark Skies.- Stargazing Resources.

Genres: Astronomy, Science, Reference, Nonfiction

436 pages, Paperback

First published November 20, 2015

Reviews

[Andrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

A nice month to month introduction to what you can see in the northern hemisphere throughout an entire year. Also includes items that can been seen in the south and a lot of resources. Start out with what we can see by just your eyes, then moving into binocular range and finally involving telescopes.

[ahmed · Rating 5 out of 5]

Decent read at all levels. A lot of information and good humor. A good book for intermediate stargazers that already started stargazing but lack more information and time.

[Aprilleigh · Rating 5 out of 5]

This would be difficult to use as a reference book, but it's not intended to be so that's fine. The layout is pretty simple. The first 12 of 15 chapters covers those things you could see using a $50 pair of binoculars during the month in question (starting with January, of course). Some observations will benefit from a telescope, but for the most part that isn't necessary. The idea is that you work your way through each chapter in only a few hours each week. The basics of stargazing and astronomy are sprinkled throughout the chapters in a slow, steady introduction to the night sky. The recommended observations get more complex as you work through the chapters, but nothing outside the range of a beginner. It's genius. Just make sure you read the preface so you understand why the book's organization looks so haphazard if you flip to one of the main chapters to start browsing.

To get full value from this book, you'll need to live in the mid-North latitudes (most of the USA and Europe). Slightly higher or lower latitudes will still be able to use the book, but some things may not be visible from those locations.

The last three chapters cover the Southern sky (the author calls it "upside-down stargazing"), eclipses and auroras (very location-dependent), and finding dark skies. There's a lot to see in the Southern skies, but since most users of this book will likely only get the chance on a short vacation, the author limits himself to a few of the most spectacular sights that are visible year-round. The section on eclipses and auroras talks about how, why, and where they happen, and how to go about locating and observing one. The section on dark skies talks about where to find the darkest skies, how to prepare for a dark sky session and what to bring, and discusses some ancient constellations and star patterns that are difficult to see now because of extensive light pollution. All three of these final chapters involve a fair bit of travelling for the average mid-Nothern latitude stargazer. Despite the unconventional layout, this one is very nicely done.

[Kadri · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is great starting out with the basics and everything you can see with the naked eye and going through the seasons and different objects to observe or take note of. Very enjoyable and not at all boring read as just an atlas can sometimes be.