A Stellar Book for the Beginning Astronomer

One of my favorite astronomy books for beginners is Your Guide to the Night Sky by Rick Shaffer. When I first decided I wanted to learn my way around the night sky, this was one of the first two books I used. I relied heavily on this book and used it extensively when I need to explain certain facts to my beginning astronomy class.

Mr. Shaffer, who writes a regular column in the Sky Almanac for the magazine Astronomy,starts his book by writing, "If you spend a few hours with this book once or twice a month for the next year, you can learn to find your way around the night sky."

He is absolutely right. Rick Shaffer has written an ideal introduction for the beginner or recreational astronomer. One doesn't have to have a science degree or math degree to use this book. It is not written in difficult scientific language. It is written in plain easy to understand language that any one can understand. He has also used many drawings and illustrations to help the beginner understand the concepts explained in this book.

He begins by explaining how to read a sky chart, how to apply that knowledge to the sky, and how the earth appears to make the sky move. He gives detailed descriptions of all the important things any one must know such as why the stars appear to rise in the east and set in the west and why we see different constellations during certain times of the year.

This book covers every thing the beginner needs. There is a chapter on the phases of the moon. There is another chapter on the planets and how to find them in the night sky. Yet another chapter covers meteors and meteor showers. The reader can learn about eclipses, the ecliptic, comets, and asteroids. This book even has a chapter that gives detailed information about telescopes and binoculars.

The last half of the book is the All-Sky Maps. Shaffer has a star map for each month with detailed descriptions of everything a person will see in the sky that month. He starts at one point in the sky and takes the reader on a visual tour through the heavens. He describes all of the main constellations and the major stars in each constellation. Each month also includes a Zoom Map where Shaffer covers the deep sky objects that can be easily found that month. Any one can follow his directions with ease. The star maps are written to stand alone. The reader doesn't have to wait until January to start using these sky maps. Instead the reader can start his journey with any month he wants. These maps and descriptions are a big help to the beginner or the experienced. I still like to read his descriptions before I head out for a little stargazing.

Mr. Shaffer's book full of humor and fun. I most certainly recommend anyone who wants to learn his way around the night sky to buy this book.