The 50 Best Sights in Astronomy and How to See Them

Starred review from July 1, 2007
This would make a perfect gift for every astronomy buff. Based on a lifetime of stargazing, Schaaf lists his personal favoritesthe 50 most thrilling sights to be seen in the heavens: a comet, Orions Belt, the Andromeda Galaxy, the planet Neptune, a meteor shower, sunspots, a supernova, and on and on. Schaaf begins with some basic information and terminology (altazimuth system, for example, or right ascension) and then plunges right in with the most easily accessible astronomical sight, the starry sky above our heads. For each sight, he not only explains what it is and the best conditions under which to observe it, he also tells us about its historical, mythological, or scientific importance and explores how these far-off wonders can have a very real effect on our humble home world. This could so easily have been a dry-as-dust tome, but Schaafs enthusiasm overflows every page. How could you not love a book about astronomy whose author tells you the date of his favorite planetary conjunction? (It was June 4, 1978, when Mars and Saturn got to within 0.1 degrees of each other.) Just a wonderful book.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2007, American Library Association.)