In Quest of the Universe

Key features

• Introduces students to the general methods of science, including what science is, what scientists mean when they refer to a theory, how theories are tested and developed, and what motivates scientists.
• Material is presented at an appropriate level of difficulty and detail.
• End-of-chapter material has been brought together into individual chapter Study Guides. Each Study Guide contains three sets of exercises:
  • Recall Questions are mostly multiple choice but also include other review questions.    
  • Questions to Ponder are more complex and ask students to relate material in the chapter to ideas from earlier chapters.    
  • Calculations pose numerical problems for students to solve, based on examples in the chapter.
• Optional material includes:
  • Advancing the Model boxes discuss historical developments and biographies of astronomers.    
  • Tools of Astronomy boxes present more advanced concepts.    
  • Try One Yourself problems involve a more mathematical understanding of astronomy.    
  • Worked Examples illustrate how astronomers determine some of the data we now accept as accuarate descriptions of celestial objects.  
• New to this Edition! Updated information on everything from planetary data (including extrasolar planets) to theories of stellar evolution and cosmology.
  • New photos from the Hubble Space Telescope and a variety of space probes. 
  • Expanded cosmology coverage. 
  • Added examples and applications. 
  • Enhanced historical background information.
• New to this Edition! Starlinks2 is an elaborate text-specifc web site that is updated and expanded for this edition. Here students will find a host internet review exercises, links to insightful animations and images, as well as links to other sites relating to timely discoveries that have been made since the last edition of this book. 

Contents

• Preface
• Prologue: The Quest Ahead

• Chapter 1. An Earth-Centered Universe
• Chapter 2. A Sun-Centered Universe
• Chapter 3. Gravity and the Rise of Modern Astronomy
• Chapter 4. Light and the Electromagnetic Spectrum
• Chapter 5. Telescopes: Windows to the Universe
• Chapter 6. The Earth-Moon System
• Chapter 7. The Planetary Overview
• Chapter 8. The Terrestrial Planets
• Chapter 9. The Jovian Planets
• Chapter 10. Pluto and Solar System debris
• Chapter 11. The Sun
• Chapter 12. Measuring the Properties of Stars
• Chapter 13. Interstellar Matter and Star Formation
• Chapter 14. The Lives and Deaths of Low-Mass Stars
• Chapter 15. The Deaths of Massive Stars
• Chapter 16. The Milky Way Galaxy
• Chapter 17. A Diversity of Galaxies
• Chapter 18. Cosmology: The Nature of the Universe
• Chapter 19. The Quest for Extraterrestrial Intelligence

• Appendixes
• A. Units and Constants
• B. Solar Data
• C. Planetary Data
• D. Planetary Satellites
• E. The Brightest Stars
• F. The Nearest Stars
• G. The Constellations
• H. Answers to Selected Questions and Try One Yourself Exercises

• Glossary
• Index