ASTRONOMY: A Self-Teaching Guide 7th Edition -- To The Reader -- PARTICULARLY USEFUL FEATURES -- WHAT'S NEW IN THE SEVENTH EDITION? -- STUDY AIDS -- USEFUL RESOURCES AND WEB SITES -- ACKNOWLEDGMENTS -- CONTENTS -- LIST OF TABLES -- INTRODUCTION: COSMIC VIEW -- Chapter 1: UNDERSTANDING THE STARRY SKY -- 1.1 STARGAZER'S VIEW -- 1.2 CONSTELLATIONS -- 1.3 CIRCUMPOLAR CONSTELLATIONS -- 1.4 HOW TO USE THE STAR MAPS -- 1.5 HOW TO IDENTIFY CONSTELLATIONS -- 1.6 STAR NAMES -- 1.7 BRIGHTNESS -- 1.8 LOCATION ON EARTH -- 1.9 CELESTIAL COORDINATES -- 1.10 LOCATION ON THE CELESTIAL SPHERE -- 1.11 LOCAL REFERENCE LINES -- 1.12 CELESTIAL MERIDIAN -- 1.13 LATITUDE AND STARGAZING -- 1.14 APPARENT DAILY MOTION OF THE STARS -- 1.15 UNUSUAL VIEWS -- 1.16 APPARENT ANNUAL MOTION OF THE STARS -- 1.17 THE ECLIPTIC -- 1.18 APPARENT ANNUAL MOTION OF THE SUN -- 1.19 EARTH'S SEASONS -- 1.20 EQUINOXES AND SOLSTICES -- 1.21 SUN'S ALTITUDE -- 1.22 OBSERVABLE EFFECTS OF EARTH'S MOTIONS -- 1.23 THE DAY -- 1.24 PRECESSION -- Chapter 2: LIGHT AND TELESCOPES -- 2.1 WHAT IS LIGHT? -- 2.2 WAVELENGTH -- 2.3 THE ELECTROMAGNETIC SPECTRUM -- 2.4 RANGE OF WAVELENGTHS -- 2.5 SPEED OF LIGHT -- 2.6 WAVE FREQUENCY -- 2.7 WAVELENGTH AND FREQUENCY -- 2.8 WAVE PROPAGATION -- 2.9 WAVE EQUATION -- 2.10 RADIATION LAWS -- 2.11 ASTRONOMICAL OBSERVATIONS -- 2.12 OPTICAL TELESCOPES -- 2.13 BINOCULARS -- 2.14 REFRACTING TELESCOPES -- 2.15 REFLECTING TELESCOPES -- 2.16 REFLECTORS VERSUS REFRACTORS -- 2.17 f NUMBER -- 2.18 IMAGES -- 2.19 RESOLVING POWER -- 2.20 MAGNIFICATION -- 2.21 MAXIMUM USEFUL MAGNIFICATION -- 2.22 TELESCOPE ABERRATIONS -- 2.23 TELESCOPE DESIGN AND SELECTION -- 2.24 TELESCOPE ENHANCEMENTS -- 2.25 RADIO ASTRONOMY -- 2.26 RADIO TELESCOPES -- 2.27 INFRARED ASTRONOMY -- 2.28 ULTRAVIOLET, X-RAY, AND GAMMA RAY ASTRONOMY -- Chapter 3: THE STARS -- 3.1 DISTANCES TO NEARBY STARS.

3.2 TYPES OF SPECTRA -- 3.3 SPECTRAL LINES -- 3.4 SPECTRA OF STARS -- 3.5 CHEMICAL COMPOSITION -- 3.6 SPECTRAL CLASSES -- 3.7 TEMPERATURE -- 3.8 ORIGIN OF SPECTRAL CLASS CHARACTERISTICS -- 3.9 MOTIONS -- 3.10 OTHER PROPERTIES -- 3.11 DECODING A STAR'S SPECTRUM -- 3.12 LUMINOSITY -- 3.13 PROPAGATION OF LIGHT -- 3.14 APPARENT MAGNITUDE -- 3.15 ABSOLUTE MAGNITUDE -- 3.16 DISTANCES FROM MAGNITUDES -- 3.17 COMPARISONS -- 3.18 HERTZSPRUNG- RUSSELL DIAGRAM -- 3.19 MASS-LUMINOSITY RELATION -- 3.20 SIZES AND DENSITIES -- 3.21 DOUBLE STAR SYSTEMS -- Chapter 4: THE SUN -- 4.1 SUN AND EARTH -- 4.2 DISTANCES AND SIZE -- 4.3 MAKEUP -- 4.4 THE SUN'S STRUCTURE -- 4.5 ROTATION -- 4.6 DATA -- 4.7 OBSERVATIONS -- 4.8 SEETHING SURFACE -- 4.9 SUNSPOTS -- 4.10 ACTIVITY CYCLES -- 4.11 MAGNETISM -- 4.12 FLARES AND CORONAL MASS EJECTIONS -- 4.13 HOW SOLAR ERUPTIONS AFFECT EARTH -- 4.14 SOLAR WIND -- 4.15 PROBING THE INTERIOR -- 4.16 COMMON FEATURES -- 4.17 MOTIONS IN SPACE -- Chapter 5: STELLAR EVOLUTION -- 5.1 LIFE CYCLE OF STARS -- 5.2 BIRTHPLACES -- 5.3 BIRTH -- 5.4 LIFETIMES -- 5.5 WHY STARS SHINE -- 5.6 OLD AGE -- 5.7 RED GIANTS -- 5.8 SYNTHESIS OF HEAVIER ELEMENTS -- 5.9 VARIABLE STARS -- 5.10 DEATH -- 5.11 MASS LOSS -- 5.12 WHITE DWARFS -- 5.13 LIFE CYCLE OF SUNLIKE STARS -- 5.14 EXPLODING STARS -- 5.15 SUPERNOVA REMNANTS -- 5.16 SUPERDENSE STARS -- 5.17 BLACK HOLES -- Chapter 6: GALAXIES -- 6.1 STAR SYSTEMS -- 6.2 MILKY WAY GALAXY -- 6.3 LOCATIONS OF STARS -- 6.4 THEORY CHECK -- 6.5 MASS -- 6.6 BETWEEN THE STARS -- 6.7 GREAT CLOUDS -- 6.8 MAPPING OUR GALAXY -- 6.9 STAR POPULATIONS -- 6.10 FORMATION OF OUR GALAXY -- 6.11 STRUCTURE OF THE MILKY WAY GALAXY -- 6.12 BEYOND THE MILKY WAY GALAXY -- 6.13 CLASSIFICATION OF GALAXIES -- 6.14 GALACTIC PROPERTIES -- 6.15 GALACTIC EVOLUTION -- 6.16 GROUPINGS -- 6.17 EXTRAORDINARY ACTIVITY IN GALAXIES -- 6.18 RADIO GALAXIES.

6.19 INFRARED GALAXIES -- 6.20 MYSTERIOUS QUASARS -- Chapter 7: THE UNIVERSE -- 7.1 ETERNAL QUESTIONS -- 7.2 THE EXPANDING UNIVERSE -- 7.3 REDSHIFTS -- 7.4 VELOCITY-DISTANCE RELATION -- 7.5 PREMISE -- 7.6 STANDARD BIG BANG THEORY -- 7.7 BIG CRUNCH -- 7.8 STEADY STATE THEORY -- 7.9 OBSERVATIONAL TESTS -- 7.10 INCONSTANT HUBBLE CONSTANT -- 7.11 MATTER AND ENERGY -- 7.12 UNIVERSAL RADIATION -- 7.13 BIG BANG MODEL SUCCESSES -- 7.14 BIG BANG QUESTIONS -- 7.15 AGE -- 7.16 SHAPE AND SIZE -- Chapter 8: EXPLORING THE SOLAR SYSTEM -- 8.1 INVENTORY -- 8.2 ORIGIN OF THE SOLAR SYSTEM -- 8.3 DAY NAMES -- 8.4 MOON PHASES -- 8.5 PLANET WATCHING -- 8.6 BRIEF HISTORY -- 8.7 FIRST TELESCOPIC DATA -- 8.8 LAWS OF PLANETARY MOTION -- 8.9 MOTION AND GRAVITY -- 8.10 MOON'S ORBITAL MOTION -- 8.11 SYZYGY -- 8.12 SPACEFLIGHT -- 8.13 PLANET SURVEY -- 8.14 DAYS AND YEARS -- 8.15 ASTEROIDS -- 8.16 MOON COMPARISONS -- Chapter 9: THE PLANETS -- 9.1 PLANET MERCURY -- 9.2 VENUS: OBSERVING -- 9.3 VENUS: THE PLANET -- 9.4 PLANET EARTH -- 9.5 EARTH'S STRUCTURE -- 9.6 EARTH'S GEOLOGICAL ACTIVITY -- 9.7 EARTH'S MAGNETISM -- 9.8 EARTH'S ATMOSPHERE -- 9.9 MARS: OBSERVING -- 9.10 MARS: THE SURFACE -- 9.11 MARS: THE PLANET -- 9.12 MOONS OF MARS -- 9.13 JUPITER: OBSERVING -- 9.14 JUPITER: THE PLANET -- 9.15 JUPITER'S MOONS -- 9.16 PLANET SATURN -- 9.17 SATURN'S MOONS -- 9.18 PLANET URANUS -- 9.19 URANUS'S MOONS -- 9.20 PLANET NEPTUNE -- 9.21 NEPTUNE'S MOONS -- 9.22 DWARF PLANETS -- Chapter 10: THE MOON -- 10.1 NEAREST NEIGHBOR -- 10.2 IN THE SKY -- 10.3 ROTATION -- 10.4 SPECIAL EFFECTS -- 10.5 SIZE -- 10.6 DENSITY -- 10.7 DATA -- 10.8 OBSERVING -- 10.9 CRATERS -- 10.10 EXPLORING -- 10.11 BOMBARDMENT -- 10.12 MOUNTAINS -- 10.13 HISTORY -- 10.14 INSIDE THE MOON -- 10.15 SURFACE CONDITIONS -- 10.16 ECLIPSE OF THE SUN -- 10.17 ECLIPSE OF THE MOON -- 10.18 ECLIPSE TIMES -- 10.19 OCCULTATIONS.

Chapter 11: COMETS, METEORS, AND METEORITES -- 11.1 COMETS -- 11.2 SIGNIFICANCE OF COMETS -- 11.3 COMET STRUCTURE -- 11.4 THE NUCLEUS -- 11.5 THE COMA -- 11.6 THE TAILS -- 11.7 DISAPPEARANCE -- 11.8 ORIGIN OF COMETS -- 11.9 PERIODIC COMETS -- 11.10 COMET FATE -- 11.11 COMET HUNT -- 11.12 INTERPLANETARY REMAINS -- 11.13 SHOOTING STARS -- 11.14 METEOR SHOWERS -- 11.15 BEST METEOR DISPLAYS -- 11.16 ROCKY LANDINGS -- 11.17 MAKEUP OF METEORITES -- 11.18 IMPACTS ON EARTH -- Chapter 12: LIFE ON OTHER WORLDS? -- 12.1 PROMISE -- 12.2 COSMIC ORIGINS -- 12.3 EVIDENCE -- 12.4 EVOLUTION -- 12.5 NEARBY PLANETS AND MOONS -- 12.6 THE ODDS -- 12.7 EXTRASOLAR PLANETARY SYSTEMS -- 12.8 SPACE TRAVEL -- 12.9 STAR PROBES -- 12.10 COMMUNICATION -- 12.11 A SERIOUS SEARCH -- EPILOGUE -- USEFUL RESOURCES AND WEB SITES -- Appendix 1: THE CONSTELLATIONS -- Appendix 2: PHYSICAL AND ASTRONOMICAL CONSTANTS -- Appendix 3: MEASUREMENTS AND SYMBOLS -- Appendix 4: PERIODIC TABLE OF THE ELEMENTS -- Appendix 5: THE NEAREST STARS -- Appendix 6: THE MESSIER OBJECTS -- FAVORITES -- INDEX -- STAR AND MOON MAPS -- Photo Insert.