Now everyone can learn to take great pictures of the cosmos! The night sky is filled with immense beauty and mystery, and it's no wonder so many photographers want to learn how to take great photographs of all it contains: the moon, stars, planets, galaxies, and beyond. But for photographers just getting started photographing the cosmos, some books veer into "advanced" territory way too quickly, filled with difficult theory and long, expensive lists of "must-have" gear. If you're just starting your adventure in astrophotography, The Beginner's Guide to Astrophotography is the book for you!

 

Photographer Mike Shaw teaches you everything you need to know to capture great images of the night sky--without breaking the bank or needing an advanced physics degree. In this book, you'll quickly gain an understanding of the night sky, then dive into gear and settings. Regardless of the camera you own (smartphone, DSLR, or mirrorless), you'll be able to capture shots you love. You'll learn all about the gear you absolutely need (and what you don't) as well as the accessories that will make your astrophotography life easier. Then you'll dive into camera technique: exposure settings, focusing tricks, and composition techniques to get the shot. You'll also learn about the best apps for astronomy, weather, planning, and navigation.

This is the ultimate, easy-to-read guide for eclipse-chasers. Eclipse chasers are now numbered in the tens of thousands. Every total solar eclipse sees dozens of cruise ships, each with about a thousand people on board, steaming along the track of the eclipse. Tens of thousands of observers travel to the eclipse track on land, to witness these rare astronomical events. There are some important eclipses coming up in the years ahead: in 2008 August across Siberia, and then through the Gobi Desert. In 2009, there is a 6 minute 38 second eclipse (very long) in China, south of Japan, and the Pacific Ocean. There will be two more big ones in the south Pacific in 2010 and 2012, then in 2017 there is a solar eclipse that will be visible right across the USA.

 

The technology available to amateur astronomers is improving fast. Recent additions are low-cost white-light solar binoculars, and the new generation of affordable H-Alpha telescopes. These can of course be used to view prominences without an eclipse taking place, and the book includes something of this too. This new book will in fact include everything an eclipse chaser needs. It will make it possible to prevent expensive equipment/set-up errors thousands of miles from home, and avoid problems that have to be fixed with only minutes to spare. It advises on the right equipment to buy for observing and for imaging digital only]. It provides eclipse virgins with a good feeling for what a trip abroad to an eclipse is like ? including a humorous look at all the things that can go wrong, and in previous expeditions, have. Travel details are included, essential in these days of high-security and when equipment has to becarried in a standard 20kg suitcase and 5kg cabin bag. And of course the first part of the book contains a wealth of information about solar eclipses: how and why they happen, the physics of the Sun and solar system, and what can be observed only during a total eclipse.

This is the unique story of observing a total solar eclipse for no less than 74 consecutive minutes. On the summer morning of June 30, 1973, the Sun rises on the Canary Islands. But it is strangely indented by the Moon. The eclipse of the century has just begun. From the west, the lunar shadow rushes to the African coast at a velocity of over 2000 kilometers per hour. Astronomers on the ground will enjoy seven short minutes of total eclipse to study the solar corona - too short for Pierre Lena and seven scientists who board the Concorde 001 prototype, an extraordinary plane to become the first commercial supersonic aircraft. With André Turcat as chief pilot and a crew of five, at 17000 m altitude, the aircraft remains in the lunar shadow for 74 minutes, a record time of scientific observations not yet beaten and allowing for exceptional measurements.

 

Science, technology, aviation and history combine in the story of a unique human adventure aboard a legendary aircraft, illustrated with a rich and original iconography. It reflects the wonderful domains that science and technology can open, and the passion in the professions they offer. A must read for every eclipse chaser and fan of true scientific adventures. On the summer morning of June 30, 1973, the Sun rises on the Canary Islands. But it is strangely indented by the Moon. The eclipse of the century has just begun. From the west, the lunar shadow rushes to the African coast at a velocity of over 2000 kilometers per hour. Astronomers on the ground will enjoy seven short minutes of total eclipse to study the solar corona - too short for Pierre Lena and seven scientists who board the Concorde 001 prototype, an extraordinary plane to become the first commercial supersonic aircraft. With André Turcat as chief pilot and a crew of five, at 17000 m altitude, the aircraft remains in the lunar shadow for 74 minutes, a record time of scientific observations not yet beaten and allowing for exceptional measurements. Science, technology, aviation and history combine in the story of a unique human adventure aboard a legendary aircraft, illustrated with a rich and original iconography. It reflects the wonderful domains that science and technology can open, and the passion in the professions they offer. A must read for every eclipse chaser and fan of true scientific adventures.

In this book Astronomy Magazine editor Michael Bakich presents all the information you'll need to be ready for the total solar eclipse that will cross the United States on August 21, 2017. In this one resource you'll find out where the eclipse will occur, how to observe it safely, what you'll experience during the eclipse, the best equipment to choose, how to photograph the event, detailed weather forecasts for locations where the Moon's shadow will fall, and much more. 

 

Written in easy-to-understand language (and with a glossary for those few terms you may not be familiar with), this is the must-have reference for this unique occurrence. It's not a stretch to say that this eclipse will prove to be the most viewed sky event in history. That's why even now, more than a year before the eclipse, astronomy clubs, government agencies, cities -- even whole states -- are preparing for the unprecedented onslaught of visitors whose only desire is to experience darkness at midday. Bakich informs observers what anyone will need to observe, enjoy, and understand this event.