I had to purchase Observing the Universe: A Guide to Observational Astronomy and Planetary Science, by Andrew Norton, for the Duke TIP program at PARI. It explains in good detail many aspects of observational astronomy. Good book for a serious introduction to this subject.
The Biggest Bangs: The Mystery of Gamma-ray Bursts, the Most Violent Explosions in the Universe by Jonathan Katz is a decent book on gamma-ray bursts and their history. I would recommend this book as an introduction to these transient phenomena.
Chandra X-Ray observatory, named after Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar, has provided scientists with the best x-ray images ever taken of the universe. To explore the satellite’s mission and its discoveries, I would recommend reading The Restless Universe: Understanding X-Ray Astronomy in the Age of Chandra and Newton by Eric Schlegel.
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| NGC 922 – X-Ray |
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| NGC 922 – Optical |
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| NGC 922 – X-Ray and Optical |
Edward O. Wilson does a great job exploring the wonderful diversity on Earth in his book The Diversity of Life. If Earth’s biosphere is to continue supporting the conditions for life, then diversity must be conserved and protected. Diversity provides the necessary adaptive power to withstand natural disasters. Wilson writes many great books and this is one of them.
Anyone interested in a first hand account of NASA‘s robotic missions to the moons of Jupiter and Saturn will find Moon Hunters: NASA’s Remarkable Expeditions to the Ends of the Solar System by Jeffrey Kluger to be a great read. Various moons, like Europa and Titan, may harbor forms of life and the only way to find out is to explore them. The book narrates the discoveries of various probes, such as Ranger, Voyager, and Galileo.
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