The Backyard Astronomer's Guide | 
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| Authors: Terence Dickinson, Alan Dyer
Publisher: Firefly Books
Category: Book
List Price: $49.95
Buy New: $29.99
You Save: $19.96 (40%)
New (32) Used (10) from $29.99
Rating:  57 reviews
Sales Rank: 6380
Media: Hardcover
Edition: Enlarged 3rd
Pages: 368
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 4.1
Dimensions (in): 11 x 9 x 1.3
ISBN: 1554073448
Dewey Decimal Number: 522
EAN: 9781554073443
ASIN: 1554073448
Publication Date: September 12, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
p iThe modern classic, completely updated./i /pp The newest edition of bThe Backyard Astronomer's Guide/b includes the latest data and answers the questions most often asked by home astronomers, from beginners to experienced stargazers. Terence Dickinson and Alan Dyer provide expert guidance on the right types of telescopes and other equipment; photographing the stars through a telescope; and star charts, software and other references. They cover daytime and twilight observing, planetary and deep-sky observing, and much more. /pp With over 500 color photographs and illustrations, bThe Backyard Astronomer's Guide/b is one of the most valuable, beautiful and user-friendly astronomy books ever produced. /pp New and updated for this edition:/pul liiA 20-page full-color Atlas of the Milky Way/i provides location and context for hundreds of celestial objects mentioned throughout the book./li liiA chapter on Astrophotography with Digital Cameras/i specifies what equipment works best and how to use it to collect a color gallery of celestial portraits./li liiTelescopes for Recreational Astronomy/i features assessments of a wide range of new telescopes, from models for beginners to those for veteran astronomy enthusiasts, with special emphasis on computerized telescopes and how they work./li liiAccessory Catalog/i spotlights the best of the accessories and flags the frivolous and irrelevant./li liiThree practical appendices/i: Polar Aligning Your Telescope; Optics Cleaning and Collimation; Testing Your Telescope Optics./li /ulp Any serious home astronomer must have this superb guide as an ongoing reference. /p (20030104)
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| Customer Reviews: Read 52 more reviews...
 Everything you need to know! November 5, 2008
Marcus (New Auburn, WI)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Well, almost everything...this shows a beginner everything he needs to know about astronomy, from equipment to nebulae to satellites, however, it doesn't show you how to find anything in the sky. the book has some beautiful charts of the milky way in the back but no indication of how to use them or what are the good targets. a few pages describing what targets to search for and how to find them would be very useful to a beginner. "left turn at Orion" would be a good choice for something like that. br / br / It does a fantastic job informing you about everything you need to know about telescopes which i think is the hardest part to getting into star gazing. i just wanted to get a telescope and look in it and nothing else, but i soon realized that you must know your equipment. All good astronomers know their equipment and a lot of times create their own equipment. this is where this book excels. it provides a great, up to date, overview of everything that's out there. having a good reference about equipment isn't "necessary", having the internet and all, but it is VERY convenient. in fact i would say it is necessary. this along with the beautiful pictures,the fun info about planets and the sky and the history of astronomy, this would be a great purchase.
Absolute MUST BUY! October 30, 2008
David W. Gwyn (Stroudsburg, PA USA)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
This book is absolutely the best written and most information guide I have in my library. The authors are incredibly knowledgable and share their experience in a very understandable manner. The book is very current in terms of technologies, and they've included the latest and greatest technoliges and what to do with them. I particularly like their direct approach to many topics - "While many do it this way, we don't. Here's what we do..." This book is an absolute requirement in every astronomer's library.
Best Astronomy Book Ever Written October 13, 2008
Poor White Trash
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
To the point: Buy no other. This is THE best book on the subject. Amateur? Professional? Intermediate? Just starting? STOP. This is the book to buy. PERIOD. Is this simple enough?
Stop Looking - This IS the best broad-coverage introductory book on telescopes September 12, 2008
New England Yankee (Northern New England)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
When I become interested in a topic, I typically go looking first for a good introductory book. I'm fussy, though. I want one that is broad but not shallow, as timeless as possible without ignoring major technology and trends, well-written, and good quality from a publishing perspective. This book meets my needs on all. Astronomy, like many activities with an enthusiast audience, is flush with books that are all but worthless - compendiums of articles, volumes thrown together based on the whims and news of the moment, etc. By contrast, this is a nicely balanced book that covers virtually all major topics of interest related to telescopes and basic observing for a new amateur astronomer. Having looked through more intro books than I care to admit, I believe this is the best out there, and it's a good one. Informative and enjoyable reading.
Excellent for Sorting thru What Can Be Bewildering at 1st June 11, 2008
Bill (Metro Atlanta, GA United States)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
If you are new to astronomy, THIS is THE book. I have read it and re-read on a regular basis as questions arise. It is comprehensive and covers every main topic of concern and interest to amatuer astronomers from what telescope would be right for you to how to use it and what to look at. An indispensable reference.
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