any popular books upon astronomy have been written during the Mpast few years, but most of them cater either for the casual dabbler who is content to learn from the depths of his armchair or else for the serious amateur who already knows the main facts.What I have done, or tried to do, is to strike a happy mean. This book has been aimed at the needs of the beginner who knows nothing whatsoever, but who is nevertheless anxious to make a start with what equipment he can collect at limited cost. All astronomers, professional or amateur, were beginners once, and all have had to draw upon the...