Star-Hopping
Your Visa to Viewing the Universe

Learn all about the starry skies and ancient myths through the star-hopping technique.

Robert A. Garfinkle (Author)

9780521598897, Cambridge University Press

Paperback, published 13 April 1997

360 pages, 126 b/w illus. 13 tables
25 x 17.9 x 2.4 cm, 0.738 kg

'… the best explanatory diagrams I have seen are included … Information given on stars and objects encountered during the star-hops is excellent.' Astronomy & Space

This book will show you the technique of star-hopping, or using the brighter stars and asterisms as guideposts on celestial paths to fainter stars or celestial objects. Twelve monthly star-hops form the heart of the book. Two or more tours are given for each month of the year. Each main hop is a step-by-step trip for you to follow. Taking these exciting tours reinforces the lessons of the methods of star-hopping. These celestial tours can be taken any time during the year. One chapter is devoted to the popular Messier Marathon. The book covers such techniques as reading star charts, finding celestial directions, telescopic types, and selecting and using light pollution reduction filters. Basic information is also given about what we know about the universe and the people who have made the discoveries, and the ancient mythology of the sky.

Introduction
Preface
Acknowledgements
1. How to use this book and what you are going to see
2. How the sky works, determining your field of view, observing tips and how to navigate in the night sky
3. January - Taurus and Orion: the bull and hunter
4. February - Canis Minor, Canis Major, and Puppis: dog days in February and Jason's Argo
5. March - Cancer, Leo, and Corvus: a crab, the king of the beasts, and a crow
6. April - Ursa Major: a dipper round tripper
7. May - Coma Berenices and Virgo: the sparkling hair of Berenice and the wheat maiden and her bushel of galaxies
8. June - Libra and Lupus: the balance scales and the wolf
9. July - Scorpius, Sagittarius, and Scutum: the scorpion, archer, and shield of John Sobieski
10. August - Draco: following the trail of the dragon
11. September - Cygnus, Lyra, Vulpecula, and Sagitta: the swan, lyre, fox, and arrow
12. October - Andromeda and Perseus: the chained lady and her rescuer
13. November - Cepheus and Cassiopeia: the king and queen of Joppa
14. December - Pisces, Triangulum, and Aries: of fishes, a triangle, and a ram
15. Messier Marathon, a sundown to sunup hop across the skies
Appendix A: Classification tables
Appendix B: The constellations
Appendix C: The Greek alphabet
Appendix D: Decimalization of the day
Glossary
Bibliography
Index.

Subject Areas: Astronomy, space & time [PG]