Space Atlas: Mapping the Universe and Beyond - Hardcover

Trefil, James

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1426209711 ISBN 13: 9781426209710

Publisher: National Geographic, 2012

Synopsis

Combining the cartographic power of National Geographic and the breathtaking imagery of Hubble, Space Atlas is a one-stop guide to the planets in the solar system and the outer reaches of the known universe, using the most up-to-date information and the latest imagery and mapping technology. From maps of the moon to diagrams of multiple universes based on the newest ideas in string theory--this volume takes the concept of an atlas and blasts it intoouter space! With spectacularly colorful and awe-inspiring imagery from all the exciting space telescopes and probes, together with meticulously drafted and labeled maps of nearby planets and even some of their moons, Space Atlas is a wonder to behold and a volume to treasure. Prolific author James Trefil, an endowed professor of physics and veteran writer of science books, guides us through our solar system, then our Milky Way galaxy, and out beyond, at each stage offering pictures, maps, and diagrams, many conveying the newest information about the universe, never-before-presented in an atlas. 

About this title

About the Author

JAMES TREFIL is a physicist and author of more than 30 books, including The Laws of Nature and Other Worlds: The Solar System and Beyond. He is co-author of an influential textbook, Science Matters: Achieving Scientific Literacy, and was a contributor to National Geographic's Encyclopedia of Space.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Year by year, generation by generation, the way we look at our universe continues to evolve, thanks both to new technologies and new ways of thinking, spurred on by our ability to view stars and galaxies that are distant in space and time. We are sharing new ways of seeing as well, as space telescopes and interplanetary probes transmit information across millions of miles, information that we capture and transform into remarkable visual displays. From that information, ever new maps can be created— maps such as you have never seen before; maps like the ones in this beautiful volume.
 
This National Geographic Space Atlas has special meaning for me. It is an enduring honor to have been one of the few humans to have stood on the moon. Just 12 years after the launch of the Soviet Union’s first Earth-orbiting artificial satellite, Sputnik1, Neil Armstrong and I set foot on the moon on July 20, 1969.The moon to me is not a distant object in space but a real place where I spent time, and a real landscape that I remember in my mind’s eye. Looking at the maps of Earth’s moon on these pages is for me a little like retracing a vacation on the map that was carried along.

--Buzz Aldrin

Edition details

• Publisher: National Geographic
• Publication date: 2012
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1426209711
• ISBN 13: 9781426209710
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 336