Exploring the Night Sky with Binoculars | Patrick Moore | An Average Book. Some good details, at...

Exploring the Night Sky with Binoculars | Patrick Moore | Unnecessary detail

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Exploring the Nigh...

	Exploring the Night Sky with Binoculars Patrick Moore Cambridge University Press, 2000 - 213 pages average customer review:based on 3 reviews view larger image
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Star-gazing with binoculars is rewarding and, for many, a lifelong passion! Patrick Moore has painstakingly researched Exploring the Night Sky with Binoculars to describe the optimal use of binoculars for astronomical observation. He explains basic astronomy and the selection of binoculars, then goes on to discuss the stars, clusters, nebulae and galaxies that await the observer. He charts the sky seen from the northern and southern hemispheres season by season, providing detailed maps of all the constellations. In addition, the reader can also observe the Sun, Moon, planets, comets and meteors. New to this Fourth Edition are: An improved presentation of all star maps, rendering a clear impression of what the night sky really looks like; planetary data through 2010; and advice on eclipse watching, including total eclipses of the sun. With many beautiful illustrations, this handbook will be helpful and encouraging to casual observers and those cultivating a more serious interest. The enjoyment of amateur astronomy is now available to everybody!

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An Average Book. Some good details, at times tedious.

A lot of the information is given in metric system. Pricing information is given in the British Pound. Much of the information given is very good and the advise he gives is sound in regards to binocular size. There are many instances when the subject mater drags and I found myself drifting off or jumping ahead.

Unnecessary detail

If you are looking for a beginner book with a goal of recognizing the constellations, there are better choices (consider "The Stars, a new way to see them" by HA Ray). Moore's comprehensive description of each star in a constellation tends to drag, and details go well beyond the beginner level. A lot of the data will repeat what should be contained in a good star atlas. On the other hand I liked his viewing perspective, mostly aimed from northern latitudes ca 50 deg. I liked his easy literary style, and he does have an enviable lifetime of experience. He uses D-shaped star maps, that work well for stars near the horizon, but these maps aren't so good for stars overhead. Some of the introductory chapters are simple overviews of astronomy facts that are better covered in my university textbooks. Ultimately the superficial details aren't useful once you are beyond that beginner stage. I could still see holding onto a copy of this, or it's cousin "Stargazing", if only as a supplementary reference to a star atlas. However, for it's stated description as a beginner's guide to the sky, it falls short.

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Ignore Binocular Advice

The author's advice on choice of binocular ignores the age-related change in size of the human pupil, so that a 7x50 binocular is probably more binocular than an over-fifty star-gazer can use. This issue is covered well in "Astronomy Hacks" by Robert Thompson.

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