Book Review - "The Invisible Universe"

As sciences go, radio astronomy is still one of the younger disciplines out there; and while it certainly shares a lot with the field of traditional (optical) astronomy, there are also many unique aspects to this particular facet of human space exploration. This book is an entertaining combination of the history of the discipline, layman accessible overviews of the various types of celestial objects investigated by radio astronomy, and personal first hand accounts of the author's experiences throughout his career in the field. The book includes many illustrations (some in gorgeous color prints), and also has a section on the engineering marvels of various radio telescope installations around the globe.

The book starts with a chapter defining what exactly radio astronomy is, followed by a brief historical account of its origins and its evolution from a World War II "side effect" to the mature scientific discipline that it is today. It then takes you on a grand survey of the sky, starting with our own Sun and reaching out as to the most distant galaxies. If you ever wanted to know the differences between a Quasar, Pulsar, or a Black Hole is, this is where you will find clear and fun to read answers. The final sections also cover the use of radio astronomy in the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI), Radio Cosmology, and planned future developments in the field like the awe inspiring Square Kilometer Array (SKA) precursors of which are currently under construction in Western Australia. The final chapter is a little more philosophical in nature, discussing the motivations behind our drive to explore the sky and whether or not there are still wonders left to discover.

The book I read was the 2^nd Edition (published in 2007), and it is still very much up to date on current events. Altogether, I found it a thoroughly enjoyable read. The book isn't a self-learning text book (there are no equations), but neither is it meant to be. For the casual reader with an interest in all aspects of space exploration, this is a great way to learn about the past and continuing contributions that emerged out of the radio astronomy field towards our understanding of the universe that we all live in.

Title : The Invisible Universe
Author : Gerrit L. Verschuur
Length : 156 pages
Publisher : Springer
Date : 2007
ISBN : 0387308164