Astronomy: From the Earth to the
Universe
The fifth edition of Jay Pasachoff's Astronomy: From the Earth to
the Universe was issued in 1998. In my review of that edition, I
described it as an excellent and timely introduction to the cosmos,
and I praised Pasachoff's unadorned, conversational style of writing
and his tactic of using bits of pop culture to make his book engaging.
(See "A Good, Friendly Textbook by a Lucid Writer" in The Textbook
Letter, Vol. 8, No. 5.)
In the sixth edition, copyrighted in 2002, Pasachoff has revised
Astronomy: From the Earth to the Universe significantly. He
has not changed the book's essential content or style, but he has
added new material about extrasolar planets, about stellar evolution,
and about cosmology, among other topics.
Again, as in the fifth edition, each chapter has a short section in
which Pasachoff undertakes to correct popular misconceptions. And
again, Pasachoff has loaded his book with pictures that range from
astounding celestial images to photographs which show such whimsical
subjects as Carhenge (a monument, in Nebraska that resembles
Stonehenge but is made from automobiles), a can of Campbell's
Primordial Soup, and the character Yoda from George Lucas's film
Star Wars. (Yoda appears at the start of Pasachoff's chapter
about the possibility that intelligent life exists elsewhere in the
universe.) In certain cases, however, Pasachoff hasn't handled his
illustrations as well as he might have. On page 3, the caption under
an image of a total solar eclipse says that Jupiter appears in the
image as a "white dot," but the image is so small that no such dot is
visible. Likewise, the pictures of galaxy clusters in deep space are
too small, and they cry out for full-page treatment. And the
illustration on page 114 does not show the relative sizes of the
planets, its caption notwithstanding.
Pasachoff is not afraid to venture into difficult territory --
astrophysics, relativity and string theory, as examples -- but he
remembers for whom he is writing, and he has a knack for explaining
things in ways that make formidable topics comprehensible to students.
His enthusiasm for astronomy comes through clearly, as does his
devotion to helping students develop an appreciation for scientific
methods of inquiry. The sixth edition of Astronomy: From the Earth
to the Universe is a worthy successor to the fifth, and I
recommend it.
Bing F. Quock serves as acting chairman of the Morrison Planetarium
at the California Academy of Sciences, in San Francisco. He
specializes in presenting astronomy to the public, and he has
principal responsibility for planning and directing the Planetarium's
public programs. His scientific interests include comparative
planetology.
Reviewing a science book for high-school honors courses
by Jay M. Pasachoff. Sixth edition, 2002. 816 pages +
appendices.
ISBN: 0-03-033488-8. Published by Brooks/Cole, 511 Forest Lodge
Road,
Pacific Grove, California 93950.
Here Is a Worthy New Version
of an Excellent Astronomy TextBing F. Quock
During the past few years, astronomers have discovered new solar
systems, new bodies within our own solar system (including new moons
of Jupiter and significant new objects that reside, with Pluto, in the
Kuiper Belt) and definitive evidence that liquid water once existed on
the surface of Mars. Astronomy is evolving rapidly -- and for this
reason, the writers of astronomy textbooks must revise their products
fairly frequently.
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