Practical Astronomy with your Calculator, first published in 1979, has enjoyed immense success. The author's clear and easy to follow routines enable you to solve a variety of practical and recreational problems in astronomy using a scientific calculator. Mathematical complexity is kept firmly in the background, leaving just the elements necessary for swiftly making calculations. The major topics are: time, coordinate systems, the Sun, the planetary system, binary stars, the Moon, and eclipses. In the third edition there are entirely new sections on generalised coordinate transformations, nutrition, aberration, and selenographic coordinates. The calculations for sunrise and moonrise are improved. A larger page size has increased the clarity of the presentation. This handbook is essential for anyone who needs to make astronomical calculations. It will be enjoyed by amateur astronomers and appreciated by students studying introductory astronomy. • Clear presentation • Reliable approximations • Covers orbits, transformations, and general celestial phenomena • Can be used anywhere, worldwide • Routines extensively tested by thousands of readers round the world
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Astronomers have always been concerned with time and its measurements.. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
Astronomers have always been concerned with time and its measurements.. Read the first page
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I have often had to refer to my copy of this book during the period of my PhD - it is different from other similar books in that it provides worked examples broken down line by line. I believe it to be useful for the physical sciences, but also a good way to learn algorithm construction.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
By JP
Format:Paperback
I like this book, because it is very practical, well structured and easy to use.
Inside 'Practical Astronomy with your calculator' you can find all the most common practical
problems of astronomy and ready to use recipes of how to calculate and find the solutions to
these problems. The best thing of it all is that it can all be done with a rather simple, but
modern calculator that includes trigonometric functions. This means that no complex derivatives,
integration or programming is needed!
I tried for example to calculate my local sidereal time (or 'star time') here in Denmark at any
date and time of the year. Then I double checked the results with online 'astronomical watches'
and it all fit very well....
Try to calculate any of the astronomical relations yourself and you will know what I mean!
Inside 'Practical Astronomy with your calculator' you can find all the most common practical
problems of astronomy and ready to use recipes of how to calculate and find the solutions to
these problems. The best thing of it all is that it can all be done with a rather simple, but
modern calculator that includes trigonometric functions. This means that no complex derivatives,
integration or programming is needed!
I tried for example to calculate my local sidereal time (or 'star time') here in Denmark at any
date and time of the year. Then I double checked the results with online 'astronomical watches'
and it all fit very well....
Try to calculate any of the astronomical relations yourself and you will know what I mean!
By Vicky J
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
There is a later edition which uses calculator or spreadsheet. Things have moved on since 1989 and even calculators are more advanced now. I bought this with a view to explaining astronomical relationships to my nephew aged 15 at the time; at his request. It didn't work because he had insufficient maths and knowledge of algorithms. Maybe I expected too much.
It certainly isn't a simple guide although the examples are worked through in detail, line by line. Sometimes, functions are introduced on the basis "this is how it is" without too much detail of their origins. Perhaps that's necessary.
I tried to use it to calculate the sunrise and sunset times for any stated latitude; and it didn't help. I ended up forming the model for myself. But this book is interesting and has its uses. Now go for the recent edition and use spreadsheets.
It certainly isn't a simple guide although the examples are worked through in detail, line by line. Sometimes, functions are introduced on the basis "this is how it is" without too much detail of their origins. Perhaps that's necessary.
I tried to use it to calculate the sunrise and sunset times for any stated latitude; and it didn't help. I ended up forming the model for myself. But this book is interesting and has its uses. Now go for the recent edition and use spreadsheets.
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