|
Astronomical Calendar 2009
This famous atlas-sized annual book is the most widely used and
most attractive guide to what will happen in the night sky throughout
the year.
Each page is the size of three or four of an ordinary book, allowing
large spreads of mixed diagrams and text.
The Astronomical Calendar has been published continuously
since 1974, and is used by about 20,000 (amateurs, telescope-owners,
clubs, teachers, planetariums, libraries, enjoyers of the sky) in
over 100 countries.
11 x 15 in., 84 pages, many illustrations.
ISBN 978-0-934546-54-6.
$24.95 now reduced to $19.95
For discounts, shipping charges, and other
ways of ordering see "contact and ordering"
at left.
|


|
|
An introduction explains how to use the various components of the
book and, if you are a beginner, what to select at first (since
there are so many levels of information). For each month there is
a large map of the evening sky; facing it, a diary of 40 or so events,
many with paragraph-long descriptions.
Other features on the monthly pages are diagrams of where the planets
are in their orbits, "Constellation Clues," "Telescopic
Tour", "Observer's Highlights," and sketches of the
most striking sky scenes.
Supplementary sections include Highlights of the Year, The Sun,
The Moon, Special Moons, Young Moon and Old Moon, Eclipses, Conjunctions,
Occultations, each of the planets, Asteroids, Comets, Meteor Showers,
Spaceflight, Deep-Sky Profiles, Light Pollution, Glossary, Magnitude
and Elongation, Rising and Setting, Quick Reference, and a colored
centerfold all-sky map. Some features are contributed by experts
Fred Schaaf, Clifford Cunningham, Alastair McBeath, Alan Hale, Joe
Rao, and Richard Nugent.
2009
is a special year in several ways. It has been declared International
Year of Astronomy (by the United Nations and the International
Astronomical Union), because in 1609 the newly invented telescope
was first turned on the sky by Galileo, leading to a rush of discoveries
that revolutionized humanity's view of the cosmos and began the
modern age of astronomy.
Greatest of the celestial events of 2009 is the longest total
eclipse of the Sun in the 21st century. There are many other
unusual eventsSaturn's rings edge-on, the closest approach
to Earth of Ceres (the first and largest asteroid) between 1857
and 4164, a rare few hours of "Jupiter Without Satellites",
a triple conjunction of Jupiter and Neptune, a chance to see Venus
on the same day both left and right of the Sun ...
The cover painting for 2009 is of Galileo and his telescope
in 1609. The cover picture story (entitled "First Light")
is more than twice as long as usual, describing the events of those
heady and dangerous times.
(More
on the cover painting.)

|