Universe (International Edition)

Gotta say, after writing a glowing review of “Introduction to Modern Astrophysics”, reading this makes me think I gave that textbook far too much praise - because this really has it all; full-colour, ~1000 pages, paperback printing, additional extensive glossary at the end - with definitions!?! I can’t tell you how useful just those features alone make this for undergraduate astrophysics majors like myself! Anyway, this is the one, excellent value for money and a perfect side-dish for uni textbooks.

Wounderful book: full of information clearly organised and written, with spectacular photos and good illustrations. At 2kg it's a thick and heavy book but holds together well. It tackles some of the biggest questions anyone can pose and I read it with great enjoyment. It can be read by anyone and I recommend it highly.

I have the fifth edition (of this book 1999) and I wanted to bring it up to date, for a lot has happened in astronomy in 20 years; and at the first cursory viewing this is just what I wanted: a comprehensive readable account of recent astronomy, all the way from the Earth to the Universe.. Many of the illustrations are new or improved, eg those of the planets, and the text is at least as clear; for example this is the best non-mathematical account I have seen of the details of stellar evolution.Bob Lambourne's `Galaxies and Cosmology' (revised 2015) does goes rather further in those aspects with a little more maths; it is as readable , although not so lavishly illustrated , but unfortunately it just missed gravitational waves and it's a pity there's no new edition And for black holes I do recommend `Gravity's Fatal Attraction' by Begelman and Rees, and that's 2021 so bang up to date.But only 4 stars because as commented by other reviewers the book is very floppy with too flimsy a cover, a book of this size needs something more substantial than what is effectively glossy paper, not only to protect it physically but to support it, it's quite hard to hold it open if not at a desk. .Also I agree that Amazon pack such items badly; something costing over £40 needs more than a thin non-waterproof oversized box and a few feet of crumpled paper.; I have received a recent package of timber samples with far better packing. Luckily it didn't rain while the box lay on my doorstep for some hours. (Handed to customer indeed!) .

I decided to buy this book because it is THE text book referenced for an Astronomy Course at a UK University. The book appears to be comprehensive and the information is presented in bite-sized understandable sections. I therefore believe the book is likely to provide me with the basics I need to learn in order to understand the night sky. My gripe (and hence the three star rating) relates to (a) the cheap manner in which this expensive book is covered, and (b) the fact that the book arrived damaged - because Amazon simply placed the heavy (2.2Kg) book in an oversized box without any padding. As a result the box arrived damaged - and so did the book. Irrespective of the packaging issue, this book has not been made to last. If it had been available I would have bought a hard back version, as I do with all the books I purchase. In summary - very comprehensive book, heavy and you need to choose the supplier carefully. I hope this is helpful.

Arrived in really poor condition. Front cover torn badly

Sono appassionato di astronomia e negli anni ho acquistato diversi libri per approfondire questa disciplina. Mi sento di dire che questo libro è il migliore tra tutti quelli che ho: completo, esaustivo e accessibile (il libro viene utilizzato in molti college americani come testo per corsi di astronomia di base).Il volume ha quasi 1000 pagine a colori, e tratta argomenti che vanno dall'astronomia di posizione, al moto dei pianeti, alla struttura e formazione del sistema solare, fino ad argomenti avanzati di cosmologia (big bang, espansione dell'universo, topologia dello spazio-tempo). Sono presenti moltissime illustrazioni di eccellente qualità che aiutano a capire meglio; essendo un testo scolastico, sono inoltre presenti molti esercizi.Una caratteristica che distingue questo libro da altri testi di astronomia di base è il fatto che fa uso solo di matematica a livello di scuola superiore. Tuttavia, ritengo che alcuni concetti si capiscano meglio se si dispone di conoscenze base di fisica (meccanica e termodinamica, a livello di quanto viene svolto in un liceo o in un corso di fisica di base all'università).L'unico appunto che mi sento di fare è puramente estetico: il libro è molto pesante (carta patinata a colori), ma la copertina è di cartoncino sottile per cui è impossibile leggerlo tenendolo in mano perché tende a piegarsi da tutte le parti. Va quindi appoggiato su un tavolo o su un leggio molto robusto. La rilegatura a colla, tipica dei testi scolastici, non sembra molto affidabile per un volume imponente come questo, per cui conviene trattarlo con cura per evitare che si stacchino le pagine. Visto il prezzo non economico, forse valeva la pena spendere qualcosa in più per rendere il libro più robusto.Elenco degli argomenti trattati:I - Introducing astronomy1. Astronomy and the Universe2. Knowing the Heavens3. Eclipses and the Motion of the Moon4. Gravitation and the Waltz of the Planets5. The nature of light6. Optics and telescopeII - Planets and the Moon7. Comparative planetology i: our solar system8. Comparative planetology ii: the origin of our solar system9. The living Earth10. Our barren Moon11. Mercury, Venus and Mars: terrestrial, yet unique12. Jupiter and Saturn: lord of the planets13. Jupiter and Saturn's satellites of fire and ice14. Uranus, Neptune, Pluto and the Kuiper belt: remote worlds15. Asteroids, comets, and impactsIII - Stars and stellar evolution16. Our star, the Sun17. The nature of the stars18. The birth of stars19. Stellar evolution: on and after the main sequence20. Stellar evolution: the deaths of stars21. Stellar remnants: neutron stars and black holesIV - Galaxies and cosmology22. Our galaxy23. Galaxies24. Quasars and active galaxies25. Cosmology: the origin and evolution of the universe26. Exploring the early universe27. The search for extraterrestrial life

Aglutina toda información de un modo claro, didáctico y sobre todo deductivo. Explica cada uno de los conocimientos que hasta este momento disponemos tanto de astronomía planetaria como galáctica de un modo tal que ayuda a la interpretación del conocimiento y por tanto a su interiorización y memorización. No cae en el exceso de fórmulas matemáticas, ni en sus complejidades, pero ello no evita que sea riguroso y profundo. Ojalá todo el conocimiento que se intenta transmitir en institutos, universidades… siguiera las mismas pautas de este libro. Sólo lamento que no haya una edición en castellano.

I rented this book for Astronomy. The front and back cover are very thin, so opening and closing the book put wear an tear on them. They start to crack and the back tore off. Now I'm being charged $177.00 for the book. This I ridiculous. If the covers weren't so thin it would have stayed on.

A great, high quality book for a good price! I highly recommend this book for everybody who wants to study astronomy or just simply wants to do self study.

Esaustivo e chiaro. Con molte schede di approfondimento ed esercizi. È sufficiente una matematica da scuola media. Consigliatissimo.