Description
New Age International (P) Ltd., Publishers Our Solar System by Narayan C. Rana, Joshi, Avinash W.
A smashing new popular science book on astronomy and astrophysics of the solar system. Useful to senior school and undergraduate students, teachers, physicists and scientists from other areas, as well as to the general educated public from all walks of life. Written in a clear, lucid style, in an easy-flowing language. Many concepts explained with simple models. Both the authors have published numerous popular science articles in many magazines, journals and newspapers.
Profusely illustrated, this little book contains 25 colour plates, 26 halftone photographs, and 50 line diagrams. In addition, there are 18 tables and 29 box items containing a vast amount of authentic information.
It opens up a new chapter in semipopular science book writing and publishing in India.
What can you find in this book?
A. Information on the names and sizes of all the natural satellites in the solar system, correct paths of the earth and the moon, observation of planets and the moon in the sky, masses, sizes and physical conditions of all the planets, flight paths of Voyager and Galileo spacecraft, constituents of the earth's atmosphere and of the sun, turbulent surface of the sun, solar corona and photosphere, the sun's motion in the galaxy, rings of planets, all the eclipses in the decade 1991-2000 A.D.
B. Answers to questions: What is retrograde motion of a planet? Why don't eclipses occur on every new moon full moon day? How was the mass of the moon estimated before the advent of artificial satellites? How many asteroids and comets are there in the solar system? How do we explore the earth's interior? How is scientific research on the sun and other celestial bodies carried out? Why do we see more shooting stars in the sky after midnight than before midnight? What else is there in the solar system? What is radio astronomy? What are the modern methods of research in this area? What have the scientists discovered about the solar system so far and what problems are in store for them in the future?
C. Explanation of astronomical and astrophysical terms such as conjunction, opposition, solstice, equinox, solar day/month and sidereal day/month, astronomical coordinate system, ecliptic, nodes, transit, elongation, quadrature, minute perturbations on planets, magnitude (apparent brightness), albedo etc.