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180 results in Astronomy: General Interest

Page 1 of 9

Fundamentals of Astrophysics
  • 2nd edition
  • Stan Owocki
  • Coming soon
  • Expected online publication date:
    September 2025
    Print publication:
    31 July 2025
  • Presenting a concise overview of astrophysical concepts, the second edition of this textbook bridges the gap between introductory astronomy books and advanced astrophysics texts. Designed for one-semester astrophysics courses, the textbook is aimed at science and engineering students with college-level calculus-based physics. The new edition features both revisions and additions, with the extension of topics such as luminosity distance and the inclusion of notable developments such as the James Webb and Roman Space Telescopes. As before, the chapters are organized into five parts, covering: stellar properties; stellar structure and evolution; the interstellar medium and star/planet formation; our Milky Way and other galaxies; and cosmology. The exposition guides students toward a comprehensive fundamental understanding, using 'Quick Questions' to spur practice in basic computations, and multi-part exercises that offer a greater challenge. The solutions to the questions are freely accessible online, with exercise solutions and lecture slides available for instructors.

Celestial and Stellar Dynamics
  • Barbara Ryden
  • Published online:
    16 January 2025
    Print publication:
    30 January 2025
  • Although the field of celestial dynamics – the application of Newtonian dynamics to systems with a relatively small number of celestial bodies – is centuries old, it has been reinvigorated by the discovery of thousands of exoplanetary systems orbiting other stars. This textbook uses the properties of planetary systems, including own Solar System, to illustrate the rich variety of behavior permitted by Newton's law of gravity. The textbook then expands its view to examine stellar dynamics – the study of systems containing a very large number of stars or other celestial bodies. The different techniques used for celestial dynamics and stellar dynamics are compared and contrasted. However, throughout the text, emphasis is placed on the underlying physics that applies on scales as small as the Earth–Moon system and as large as a cluster of galaxies. It is ideal for a 1-semester astrophysical dynamics course for upper-level undergraduates and starting graduate students.

Life and Language Beyond Earth
  • Raymond Hickey
  • Published online:
    16 September 2023
    Print publication:
    21 September 2023
  • Have you ever wondered whether we are alone in the universe, or if life forms on other planets might exist? If they do exist, how might their languages have evolved? Could we ever understand them, and indeed learn to communicate with them? This highly original, thought-provoking book takes us on a fascinating journey over billions of years, from the formation of galaxies and solar systems, to the appearance of planets in the habitable zones of their parent stars, and then to how biology and, ultimately, human life arose on our own planet. It delves into how our brains and our language developed, in order to explore the likelihood of communication beyond Earth and whether it would evolve along similar lines. In the process, fascinating insights from the fields of astronomy, evolutionary biology, palaeoanthropology, neuroscience and linguistics are uncovered, shedding new light on life as we know it on Earth, and beyond.

A Student's Guide to Rotational Motion
  • Effrosyni Seitaridou, Alfred C. K. Farris
  • Published online:
    07 August 2023
    Print publication:
    03 August 2023
  • Rotational motion is of fundamental importance in physics and engineering, and an essential topic for undergraduates to master. This accessible yet rigorous Student's Guide focuses on the underlying principles of rotational dynamics, providing the reader with an intuitive understanding of the physical concepts, and a firm grasp of the mathematics. Key concepts covered include torque, moment of inertia, angular momentum, work and energy, and the combination of translational and rotational motion. Each chapter presents one important aspect of the topic, with derivations and analysis of the fundamental equations supported by step-by-step examples and exercises demonstrating important applications. Much of the book is focused on scenarios in which point masses and rigid bodies rotate around fixed axes, while more advanced examples of rotational motion, including gyroscopic motion, are introduced in a final chapter.

Stellar Structure and Evolution
  • Marc Pinsonneault, Barbara Ryden
  • Published online:
    02 May 2023
    Print publication:
    06 April 2023
  • Stellar Structure and Evolution, the second volume in the Ohio State Astrophysics Series, takes advantage of our new era of stellar astrophysics, in which modern techniques allow us to map the interiors of stars in unprecedented detail. This textbook for upper-level undergraduate and graduate students aims to develop a broad physical understanding of the fundamental principles that dictate stellar properties. The study of stellar evolution focuses on the 'life cycle' of stars: how they are born, how they live, and how they die. As elements ejected by one generation of stars are incorporated into the next generation, stellar evolution is intertwined with the chemical evolution of our galaxy. Focusing on key physical processes without going into encyclopedic depth, the authors present stellar evolution in a contemporary context, including phenomena such as pulsations, mass loss, binary interactions, and rotation, which contribute to our understanding of stars.

Who Owns Outer Space?
  • International Law, Astrophysics, and the Sustainable Development of Space
  • Michael Byers, Aaron Boley
  • Published online:
    06 April 2023
    Print publication:
    13 April 2023
  • From Space debris to asteroid strikes to anti-satellite weapons, humanity's rapid expansion into Space raises major environmental, safety, and security challenges. In this book, Michael Byers and Aaron Boley, an international lawyer and an astrophysicist, identify and interrogate these challenges and propose actionable solutions. They explore essential questions from, 'How do we ensure all of humanity benefits from the development of Space, and not just the world's richest people?' to 'Is it possible to avoid war in Space?' Byers and Boley explain the essential aspects of Space science, international law, and global governance in a fully transdisciplinary and highly accessible way. Addressing the latest and emerging developments in Space, they equip readers with the knowledge and tools to engage in current and critically important legal, policy, and scientific debates concerning the future development of Space. This title is also available as Open Access on Cambridge Core.

Fundamentals of Astrophysics
  • Stan Owocki
  • Published online:
    08 October 2021
    Print publication:
    03 June 2021
  • This concise textbook, designed specifically for a one-semester course in astrophysics, introduces astrophysical concepts to undergraduate science and engineering students with a background in college-level, calculus-based physics. The text is organized into five parts covering: stellar properties; stellar structure and evolution; the interstellar medium and star/planet formation; the Milky Way and other galaxies; and cosmology. Structured around short easily digestible chapters, instructors have flexibility to adjust their course's emphasis as it suits them. Exposition drawn from the author's decade of teaching his course guides students toward a basic but quantitative understanding, with 'quick questions' to spur practice in basic computations, together with more challenging multi-part exercises at the end of each chapter. Advanced concepts like the quantum nature of energy and radiation are developed as needed. The text's approach and level bridge the wide gap between introductory astronomy texts for non-science majors and advanced undergraduate texts for astrophysics majors.

Interstellar and Intergalactic Medium
  • Barbara Ryden, Richard W. Pogge
  • Published online:
    22 September 2021
    Print publication:
    25 March 2021
  • This concise textbook, the first volume in the Ohio State Astrophysics Series, covers all aspects of the interstellar and intergalactic medium for graduate students and advanced undergraduates. This series aims to impart the essential knowledge on a topic that every astrophysics graduate student should know, without going into encyclopedic depth. This text includes a full discussion of the circumgalactic medium, which bridges the space between the interstellar and intergalactic gas, and the hot intracluster gas that fills clusters of galaxies. Its breadth of coverage is innovative, as most current textbooks treat the interstellar medium in isolation. The authors emphasise an order-of-magnitude understanding of the physical processes that heat and cool the low-density gas in the universe, as well as the processes of ionization, recombination, and molecule formation. Problems at the end of each chapter are supplemented by online projects, data sets and other resources.

The Cosmos
  • Astronomy in the New Millennium
  • 5th edition
  • Jay M. Pasachoff, Alex Filippenko
  • Published online:
    08 January 2021
    Print publication:
    11 July 2019
  • The fifth edition of The Cosmos: Astronomy in the New Millennium provides you with the fundamentals of astronomical knowledge that have been built up over decades, with an expanded discussion of the incredible advances that are now taking place in this fast-paced field, such as New Horizons' flyby of Pluto, exoplanets, 'dark matter', and the direct detection of gravitational waves by the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO). Written in a clear and easily understandable style, this textbook has been thoroughly revised to include updated data and figures, new images from recent space missions and telescopes, the latest discoveries on supernovae, and new observations of the region around the four-million-solar-mass black hole at the center of our Milky Way Galaxy. A rich array of teaching and learning resources is available at http://thecosmos5.com. The website is regularly updated to include the latest discoveries and photographs in the field.

Foundations of Astrophysics
  • Barbara Ryden, Bradley M. Peterson
  • Published online:
    18 September 2020
    Print publication:
    27 August 2020
  • Foundations of Astrophysics provides a contemporary and complete introduction to astrophysics for astronomy and physics majors. With a logical presentation and conceptual and quantitative end-of-chapter problems, the material is accessible to introductory astrophysics students taking a two-semester survey course. Starting with the motions of the solar system and a discussion of the interaction of matter and light, the authors explore the physical nature of objects in the solar system, and the exciting new field of exoplanets. The second half of their text covers stellar, galactic, and extragalactic astronomy, followed by a brief discussion of cosmology. This is a reissue of the original 2010 edition, which has established itself as one of the market-leading astrophysics texts, well known for its clarity and simplicity. It has introduced thousands of physical science students to the breadth of astronomy, and helped prepare them for more advanced studies.

Radiative Transfer in Stellar and Planetary Atmospheres
  • Edited by Lucio Crivellari, Sergio Simón-Díaz, María Jesús Arévalo
  • Published online:
    24 December 2019
    Print publication:
    09 January 2020
  • Radiative transfer is essential for obtaining information from the spectra of astrophysical objects. This volume provides an overview of the physical and mathematical background of radiative transfer, and its applications to stellar and planetary atmospheres. It covers the phenomenology and physics of early-type and late-type stars, as well as ultra-cool dwarf stars and extrasolar planets. Importantly, it provides a bridge between classical radiative transfer and stellar atmosphere modelling and novel approaches, from both theoretical and computational standpoints. With new fields of application and a dramatic improvement in both observational and computational facilities, it also discusses the future outlook for the field. Chapters are written by eminent researchers from across the astronomical disciplines where radiative transfer is employed. Using the most recent observations, this is a go-to resource for graduate students and researchers in astrophysics.

Medieval Meteorology
  • Forecasting the Weather from Aristotle to the Almanac
  • Anne Lawrence-Mathers
  • Published online:
    08 November 2019
    Print publication:
    21 November 2019
  • The practice of weather forecasting underwent a crucial transformation in the Middle Ages. Exploring how scientifically-based meteorology spread and flourished from c.700–c.1600, this study reveals the dramatic changes in forecasting and how the new science of 'astro-meteorology' developed. Both narrower and more practical in its approach than earlier forms of meteorology, this new science claimed to deliver weather forecasts for months and even years ahead, on the premise that weather is caused by the atmospheric effects of the planets and stars, and mediated by local and seasonal climatic conditions. Anne Lawrence-Mathers explores how these forecasts were made and explains the growing practice of recording actual weather. These records were used to support forecasting practices, and their popularity grew from the fourteenth century onwards. Essential reading for anyone interested in medieval science, Medieval Meteorology demonstrates that the roots of scientific forecasting are much deeper than is usually recognized.

The Quest for a Universal Theory of Life
  • Searching for Life As We Don't Know It
  • Carol E. Cleland
  • Published online:
    05 September 2019
    Print publication:
    12 September 2019
  • Integrating both scientific and philosophical perspectives, this book provides an informed analysis of the challenges of formulating a universal theory of life. Among the issues discussed are crucial differences between definitions and scientific theories and, in the context of examples from the history of science, how successful general theories develop. The central problem discussed is two-fold: first, our understanding of life is still tacitly wedded to an antiquated Aristotelian framework for biology; and second, there are compelling reasons for considering that familiar Earth life, which descends from a last universal common ancestor, is unrepresentative. What is needed are examples of life as we don't know it. Potential sources are evaluated, including artificial life, extraterrestrial life, and a shadow biosphere right here on Earth, and a novel strategy for searching for unfamiliar life in the absence of a definition or general theory is developed. The book is a valuable resource for graduate students and researchers studying the nature, origins, and extent of life in the universe.

An Introduction to Modern Astrophysics
  • 2nd edition
  • Bradley W. Carroll, Dale A. Ostlie
  • Published online:
    16 August 2019
    Print publication:
    07 September 2017
  • An Introduction to Modern Astrophysics is a comprehensive, well-organized and engaging text covering every major area of modern astrophysics, from the solar system and stellar astronomy to galactic and extragalactic astrophysics, and cosmology. Designed to provide students with a working knowledge of modern astrophysics, this textbook is suitable for astronomy and physics majors who have had a first-year introductory physics course with calculus. Featuring a brief summary of the main scientific discoveries that have led to our current understanding of the universe; worked examples to facilitate the understanding of the concepts presented in the book; end-of-chapter problems to practice the skills acquired; and computational exercises to numerically model astronomical systems, the second edition of An Introduction to Modern Astrophysics is the go-to textbook for learning the core astrophysics curriculum as well as the many advances in the field.

Solving Fermi's Paradox
  • Duncan H. Forgan
  • Published online:
    25 April 2019
    Print publication:
    02 May 2019
  • The search for extra-terrestrial intelligence (SETI) has for sixty years attempted to solve Fermi's paradox: if intelligent life is relatively common in the universe, where is everybody? Examining SETI through this lens, this volume summarises current thinking on the prevalence of intelligent life in the universe, and discusses sixty-six distinct solutions to the so-called paradox. It describes the methodology of SETI, and how many disciplines feed into the debate, from physics and biology, to philosophy and anthropology. The presented solutions are organised into three key groups: rare-Earth solutions, suggesting planetary habitability, life and intelligence are uncommon; catastrophist solutions, arguing civilisations do not survive long enough to make contact; and non-empirical solutions, those that take theoretical approaches, such as that our methodology is flawed. This comprehensive introduction to SETI concludes by looking at the future of the field and speculating on humanity's potential fate.

The Impact of Binary Stars on Stellar Evolution
  • Edited by Giacomo Beccari, Henri M. J. Boffin
  • Published online:
    05 April 2019
    Print publication:
    18 April 2019
  • Stars are mostly found in binary and multiple systems, with at least 50% of all solar-like stars having companions; this fraction approaches 100% for the most massive stars. A large proportion of these systems interact and alter the structure and evolution of their components, leading to exotic objects such as Algol variables, blue stragglers and other chemically peculiar stars, but also to phenomena such as non-spherical planetary nebulae, supernovae and gamma-ray bursts. While it is understood that binaries play a critical role in the Initial Mass Function, the interactions among binary systems significantly affect the dynamical evolution of stellar clusters and galaxies. This interdisciplinary volume presents results from state-of-the-art models and observations aimed at studying the impact of binaries on stellar evolution in resolved and unresolved populations. Serving as a bridge between observational and theoretical astronomy, it is a comprehensive review for researchers and advanced students of astrophysics.

To Measure the Sky
  • An Introduction to Observational Astronomy
  • 2nd edition
  • Frederick R. Chromey
  • Published online:
    05 February 2019
    Print publication:
    20 October 2016
  • The second edition of this popular text provides undergraduates with a quantitative yet accessible introduction to the physical principles underlying the collection and analysis of observational data in contemporary optical and infrared astronomy. The text clearly links recent developments in ground- and space-based telescopes, observatory and instrument design, adaptive optics, and detector technologies to the more modest telescopes and detectors that students may use themselves. Beginning with reviews of the most relevant physical concepts and an introduction to elementary statistics, students are given the firm theoretical foundation they need. New topics, including an expanded treatment of spectroscopy, Gaia, the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope, and photometry at large redshifts bring the text up to date. Historical development of topics and quotations emphasize that astronomy is both a scientific and a human endeavour, while extensive end-of-chapter exercises facilitate the students' practical learning experience.

High Time-Resolution Astrophysics
  • Edited by Tariq Shahbaz, Jorge Casares Velázquez, Teodoro Muñoz Darias
  • Published online:
    31 July 2018
    Print publication:
    02 August 2018
  • High time-resolution astrophysics (HTRA) involves measuring and studying astronomical phenomena on timescales of seconds to milliseconds. Although many areas of astronomy, such as X-ray astronomy and pulsar observations, have traditionally required high time-resolution studies, HTRA techniques are now being applied to optical, infrared and gamma-ray wavelength regimes, due to the development of high efficiency detectors and larger telescopes that can gather photons at a higher rate. With lectures from eminent scientists aimed at young researchers and postdoctorate students in observational astronomy and astrophysics, this volume gives a practical overview and introduction to the tools and techniques of HTRA. Just as multi-spectral observations of astrophysical phenomena are already yielding new scientific results, many astronomers are optimistic that exploring the time domain will open up an important new frontier in observational astronomy over the next decade.

Observational Astronomy
  • 2nd edition
  • D. Scott Birney, Guillermo Gonzalez, David Oesper
  • Published online:
    28 May 2018
    Print publication:
    29 June 2006
  • The long-awaited second edition of this well-received textbook gives a thorough introduction to observational astronomy. Starting with the basics of positional astronomy and systems of time, it continues with charts and catalogs covering both historically important publications and modern electronic databases. The book builds on a fundamental discussion of the basics of light and the effects of the atmosphere on astronomical observations. Chapters include discussions of optical telescopes, detectors, photometry, variable stars, astrometry, spectroscopy, and solar observations. This edition contains new discussions of measurements with CCDs and appendices give basic statistical methods, useful astronomical software and websites, and sources of accurate time-calibration signals. Observational Astronomy is the perfect textbook for upper level undergraduate or beginning graduate courses on astronomy. Examples based on real astronomical data are placed throughout the text. Each of the well-illustrated chapters is supported by a set of graduated problems and suggestions for further reading.

Bayesian Astrophysics
  • Edited by Andrés Asensio Ramos, Íñigo Arregui
  • Published online:
    28 April 2018
    Print publication:
    26 April 2018
  • Bayesian methods are being increasingly employed in many different areas of research in the physical sciences. In astrophysics, models are used to make predictions to be compared to observations. These observations offer information that is incomplete and uncertain, so the comparison has to be pursued by following a probabilistic approach. With contributions from leading experts, this volume covers the foundations of Bayesian inference, a description of computational methods, and recent results from their application to areas such as exoplanet detection and characterisation, image reconstruction, and cosmology. It appeals to both young researchers seeking to learn about Bayesian methods as well as to astronomers wishing to incorporate these approaches in their research areas. It provides the next generation of researchers with the tools of modern data analysis that are already becoming standard in current astrophysical research.

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