From the back of the book:
Astronomy, the oldest natural science, is on the move, Space exploration, orbital telescopes, vast quantities of new, more accurate data are rapidly transforming it and bringing it more and more into the public eye.
The aim of this book, written by a practicing astronomer (England's Admiralty Compass Observatory) and now revised, is twofold: to give, as non-technically as possible, a comprehensive picture of the very latest state of astronomical knowledge; and to give a brief in- sight into some of the methods used by modern astronomers. A short history of the science introduces Greek ideas, Newtonian astronomy, the Greenwich Observatory and its work, our solar system, light years, and other basics. Then follow chapters on the earth and moon, the sun and its family, the stars, and the galaxies, covering such topics as the atmosphere, the figure of the earth, the composition of the sun, life on Mars, the origin of our solar system, stellar magnitudes and motion, nebulae, novae and supernovae, the Milky Way, the expanding universe, and how did it all begin?
Illustrating the text are 16 figures and 29 astronomical photographs: solar eclipses, the surface of the moon, other galaxies, the phases of Venus, etc. There is also a bibliography in the footnotes.
Written with amazing clarity and a comprehensiveness that is rare at this introductory level, the book is a firm foundation on which interested readers may build. It is also a self-sufficient introduction for all readers, regardless of background.
Second (1966) edition (revised by the author and by Professor Donald H. Menzel, Former Director, Harvard College Observatory). New introduction by Dr. Menzel. 29 photographs. 16 figures. Bibliography in notes. Index. 189 pp. of text plus 24 pages of photos.
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