Constellations: The Story of Space Told Through the 88 Known Star Patterns in the Night Sky
- Downloads：9045
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-06-10 09:55:12
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Govert Schilling
- ISBN：0316483885
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
Perfect for stargazers and armchair astronomers of all ages， CONSTELLATIONS is a beautifully illustrated， fascinatingguide to all 88 constellations， including an illustrated star map for each。
In CONSTELLATIONS， award-winning astronomy writer Govert Schilling takes us on an unprecedented visual tour of all 88 constellations in our night sky。
Much more than just a stargazer's guide， CONSTELLATIONS is complete history of astronomy as told by Schilling through the lens of each constellation。 The book is organized alphabetically by constellation。 Profiles of each constellation include basic information such as size， visibility， and number of stars， as well as information on the discovery and naming of the constellation and associated lore。
Beyond details about the constellation itself is information about every astronomical event that took place or discovery made in the vicinity of the constellation。 In the constellation of Cygnus （the Swan） we encounter the location of the first confirmed black hole。 A stop at Gemini （the Twins） is a chance to say hello to the dwarf planet Pluto， and in Orion （the hunter） we find the location of the first identified gamma-ray burst。
Stunning star maps throughout the book by acclaimed star mapmaker Wil Tirion show us the exact location of every constellation， the details of its structure， as well as its surrounding astronomical neighbors。
In CONSTELLATIONS， award-winning astronomy writer Govert Schilling takes us on an unprecedented visual tour of all 88 constellations in our night sky。
Much more than just a stargazer's guide， CONSTELLATIONS is complete history of astronomy as told by Schilling through the lens of each constellation。 The book is organized alphabetically by constellation。 Profiles of each constellation include basic information such as size， visibility， and number of stars， as well as information on the discovery and naming of the constellation and associated lore。
Beyond details about the constellation itself is information about every astronomical event that took place or discovery made in the vicinity of the constellation。 In the constellation of Cygnus （the Swan） we encounter the location of the first confirmed black hole。 A stop at Gemini （the Twins） is a chance to say hello to the dwarf planet Pluto， and in Orion （the hunter） we find the location of the first identified gamma-ray burst。
Stunning star maps throughout the book by acclaimed star mapmaker Wil Tirion show us the exact location of every constellation， the details of its structure， as well as its surrounding astronomical neighbors。
Reviews
Stephen
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Govert Schilling is an excellent science writer。 I am a huge fan of Schilling's work， first exposed to it by Ripples in Spacetime: Einstein， Gravitational Waves， and the Future of Astronomy - which detailed the phenomena of gravitational waves and the 100 year search for them which was first achieved in September 2015 - and then various articles I've subsequently found from him。 Wil Tirion is an excellent astronomical illustrator and stellar map maker -- the author of various star charts widely Govert Schilling is an excellent science writer。 I am a huge fan of Schilling's work， first exposed to it by Ripples in Spacetime: Einstein， Gravitational Waves， and the Future of Astronomy - which detailed the phenomena of gravitational waves and the 100 year search for them which was first achieved in September 2015 - and then various articles I've subsequently found from him。 Wil Tirion is an excellent astronomical illustrator and stellar map maker -- the author of various star charts widely in use today。 Together， they have made an incredibly concise and informative introduction to the 88 constellations established by the IAU in 1928 and a phenomenal jumping off point for anyone who wants to begin exploring the night sky。The first thirty pages of the book focus on the histories of constellations， the naming conventions of the stars and objects found in constellations， a primer on astronomy， and other useful general information that will help prior to focusing on a particular spot on the night sky。 After that， the book is essentially a constellation-by-constellation alphabetical guide outlining the history and characteristics of all the constellations in the sky （categorized as Northern， Equatorial and Southern constellations）。 Physical characteristics like how many square degrees of the night sky it holds， what time of year visibility is best， how many naked-eye stars are visible， these are provided at a quick glance amid no shortage of some of the best astrographs and illustrations available showing the nebulae or cluster or other showpiece objects found in the constellation。 A detailed map of the constellation itself is also provided （just to make that part explicit）。 Timelines are also provided， outlining discoveries that took place in the constellation -- the first sighting of a planetary nebula， or a quasar or where a hypernova was first observed for example。 I found this Timeline feature to be the most endearing component of the book。 A book like this would be successful if it simply allowed the reader to pick up the "state lines" and borders of the night sky （Sagittarius there， Scorpius there， Ophicus there， etc。） This book also explains what happened in Sagittarius。 What has been observed in Scorpius - when， and by whom。 What makes Ophicus a section of the sky you could spend all night working through。 Armed with that knowledge， looking into the night sky is a little more interesting。 Over time， one might discover that the night sky itself becomes intimately familiar， no longer a seemingly random smattering of stars mysteriously migrating through the seasons through mechanisms and orders just beyond one's grasp。 As I consider it， I would probably recommend this book to anyone who is unable to efficiently direct someone else's gaze to a single point in the night sky using language alone。 （no pointing allowed！） This is an excellent book for learning the constellations -- for learning the language of the night sky itself and what is found within these arbitrary boundaries we share。 。。。more
Thirsa
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