To children the world is full of magical events, and the line between make-believe and reality is (happily) distinctly blurred. However, as we all age and have to be realistic, earn money, become serious and responsible adults (yawn ) and accept that life is short and no one is immortal, those magical events fade and die. We accept that the worlds of make-believe are simply a product of the vivid imagi- tions of great story tellers, and that we are all very similar human beings; just sl- ging away at the tedious day job, and hoping for a win on the lottery. However, there are still a few...
To children the world is full of magical events, and the line between make-believe and reality is (happily) distinctly blurred. However, as we all age...
In the last few years, cheap webcams have revolutionized amateur astronomy by providing a very inexpensive alternative to purpose-made astronomical CCD cameras, which use refrigerated imaging chips and are thus extremely expensive. Webcams are capable of more advanced work than 'normal' digital cameras because their simple construction makes it easy to remove the webcam's lens, allowing it to be interfaced directly to a telescope. Using a webcam is not difficult but most amateur astronomers who have tried to do this do not achieve the finest results, despite the webcam's potential. There...
In the last few years, cheap webcams have revolutionized amateur astronomy by providing a very inexpensive alternative to purpose-made astronomical...
Amateur astronomy has changed beyond recognition in less than two decades. The reason is, of course, technology. Affordable high-quality telescopes, computer-controlled 'go to' mountings, autoguiders, CCD cameras, video, and (as always) computers and the Internet, are just a few of the advances that have revolutionized astronomy for the twenty-first century. Martin Mobberley first looks at the basics before going into an in-depth study of what s available commercially. He then moves on to the revolutionary possibilities that are open to amateurs, from imaging, through spectroscopy and...
Amateur astronomy has changed beyond recognition in less than two decades. The reason is, of course, technology. Affordable high-quality telescopes...
Supernova explosions, which mark the deaths of massive stars or of white dwarf stars in binary systems, are unbelievably violent events. Despite occurring in gal- ies many millions of light-years away, amateur telescopes can reveal these colossal explosions, and even discover them. In the past 25 years, the amateur astronomer's contribution to supernova research has been staggering. Visual variable star observers with access to large-aperture amateur telescopes have contributed a steady stream of magnitude estimates of the brightest and closest supernovae. In addition, with the increasing...
Supernova explosions, which mark the deaths of massive stars or of white dwarf stars in binary systems, are unbelievably violent events. Despite occur...
In the Victorian era - or for non-British readers, the mid-to-late nineteenth century - amateur astronomy tended to center on Solar System objects. The Moon and planets, as well as bright comets, were the key objects of interest. The brighter variable stars were monitored, but photography was in its infancy and digital imaging lay a century in the future. Today, at the start of the twenty-first century, amateurs are better equipped than any professionals of the mid-twentieth century, let alone the nineteenth. An amateur equipped with a 30-cm telescope and a CCD camera can easily image objects...
In the Victorian era - or for non-British readers, the mid-to-late nineteenth century - amateur astronomy tended to center on Solar System objects. Th...
For many astronomers, the holy grail of observation is to discover a comet, not least because comets always bear the name of their discoverer Hunting and Imaging Comets was written for comet hunters and digital imagers who want to discover, rediscover, monitor, and make pictures of comets using astronomical CCD cameras and DSLRs. The old days of the purely visual comet hunter are pretty much over, but this is not to say that amateurs have lost interest in finding comets. The books also covers the discovery of comet fragments in the SOHO image data, CCD monitoring of older comets prone to...
For many astronomers, the holy grail of observation is to discover a comet, not least because comets always bear the name of their discoverer Hunting...
To British television viewers, the name 'Patrick Moore' has been synonymous with Astronomy and Space Travel since he first appeared on The Sky at Night in 1957. To amateur astronomers he has been a source of inspiration, joy, humour and even an eccentric role model since that time. Most people know that his 55 years of presenting The Sky at Night is a world record, but what was he really like in person? What did he do away from the TV cameras, in his observatory, and within the British Astronomical Association, the organisation that inspired him as a youngster? Also, precisely what did he do...
To British television viewers, the name 'Patrick Moore' has been synonymous with Astronomy and Space Travel since he first appeared on The Sky at Nigh...
The result of an exhaustive study of Sir Patrick Moore's observations of the Moon and planets for more than 60 years, this book is a fantastic companion to the extremely popular, "It Came From Outer Space Wearing an RAF Blazer!" written by the same author. Moore recorded his telescopic observations in his logbooks, which are reproduced and described here in detail, along with his sketches and notes. In this light, the author discusses the factors that caused Moore to switch from lunar observing to planetary and variable star observing. He has also included personal recollections and humorous...
The result of an exhaustive study of Sir Patrick Moore's observations of the Moon and planets for more than 60 years, this book is a fantastic compani...
