Jay M. Pasachoff - Böcker

Astronomy is taught in schools worldwide, but few schoolteachers have any background in astronomy or astronomy teaching, and available resources may be insufficient or non-existent. This volume highlights the many places for astronomy in the curriculum; relevant education research and 'best practice'; strategies for pre-service and in-service teacher education; the use of the Internet and other technologies; and the role that planetariums, observatories, science centres, and organisations of professional and amateur astronomers can play. The special needs of developing countries, and other under-resourced areas are also highlighted. The book concludes by addressing how the teaching and learning of astronomy can be improved worldwide. This valuable overview is based on papers and posters presented by experts at a Special Session of the International Astronomical Union.

The quest for the farthest objects in the Universe remains one of the most challenging to modern astronomy. Peering deeper and deeper into space reveals the most distant and powerful objects known and so probes back to the embryonic epochs of the Universe not long after its birth in the Big Bang. Four world experts - chosen for their ability to communicate research astronomy to popular audiences - each contribute a chapter to this lucid survey, first published in 1994. In clear terms they bring to the general audience the excitement and challenge of studying the Universe on the largest scales. They address the fundamental issues of scale in the Universe; the ghostly etchings seen on the cosmic background radiation; quasars and their evolution; and galaxy birth. This survey offers an exceptional chance for the general audience to share in the excitement of today's forefront research of the early Universe in an accessible and stimulating way.

The quest for the farthest objects in the Universe remains one of the most challenging to modern astronomy. Peering deeper and deeper into space reveals the most distant and powerful objects known and so probes back to the embryonic epochs of the Universe not long after its birth in the Big Bang. Four world experts - chosen for their ability to communicate research astronomy to popular audiences - each contribute a chapter to this lucid survey, first published in 1994. In clear terms they bring to the general audience the excitement and challenge of studying the Universe on the largest scales. They address the fundamental issues of scale in the Universe; the ghostly etchings seen on the cosmic background radiation; quasars and their evolution; and galaxy birth. This survey offers an exceptional chance for the general audience to share in the excitement of today's forefront research of the early Universe in an accessible and stimulating way.

Astronomy leads to an understanding of the history and nature of science, and attracts many young people to education in science and technology. But while in many countries astronomy is not part of the standard curriculum, many scientific and educational societies and government agencies have produced materials and educational resources in astronomy for all educational levels. This volume highlights the general strategies for effective teaching and introduces innovative points of view regarding methods of teaching and learning, particularly those using new technologies. Technology is used in astronomy both for obtaining observations and for teaching. The book also presents ideas for how astronomy can be connected to environmental issues and other topics of public interest. This valuable overview is based on papers and posters presented by many of the world's leading astronomy educators at a Special Session of the International Astronomical Union General Assembly in Prague in 2006.

How did the Sun evolve, and what will it become? What is the origin of its light and heat? How does solar activity affect the atmospheric conditions that make life on Earth possible? These are the questions at the heart of solar physics, and at the core of this book. The Sun is the only star near enough to study in sufficient detail to provide rigorous tests of our theories and help us understand the more distant and exotic objects throughout the cosmos. Having observed the Sun using both ground-based and spaceborne instruments, the authors bring their extensive personal experience to this story revealing what we have discovered about phenomena from eclipses to neutrinos, space weather, and global warming. This second edition is updated throughout, and features results from the current spacecraft that are aloft, especially NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory, for which one of the authors designed some of the telescopes.

Astronomy leads to an understanding of the history and nature of science, and attracts many young people to education in science and technology. But while in many countries astronomy is not part of the standard curriculum, many scientific and educational societies and government agencies have produced materials and educational resources in astronomy for all educational levels. This volume highlights the general strategies for effective teaching and introduces innovative points of view regarding methods of teaching and learning, particularly those using new technologies. Technology is used in astronomy both for obtaining observations and for teaching. The book also presents ideas for how astronomy can be connected to environmental issues and other topics of public interest. This valuable overview is based on papers and posters presented by many of the world's leading astronomy educators at a Special Session of the International Astronomical Union General Assembly in Prague in 2006.

How did the Sun evolve, and what will it become? What is the origin of its light and heat? How does solar activity affect the atmospheric conditions that make life on Earth possible? These are the questions at the heart of solar physics, and at the core of this book. The Sun is the only star near enough to study in sufficient detail to provide rigorous tests of our theories and help us understand the more distant and exotic objects throughout the cosmos. Having observed the Sun using both ground-based and spaceborne instruments, the authors bring their extensive personal experience to this story revealing what we have discovered about phenomena from eclipses to neutrinos, space weather, and global warming. This second edition is updated throughout, and features results from the current spacecraft that are aloft, especially NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory, for which one of the authors designed some of the telescopes.

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.

Essential for life on earth and a major influence on our environment, the Sun is also the most fascinating object in the daytime sky. Every day we feel the effect of its coming and going – literally the difference between day and night. But figuring out what the Sun is, what it’s made of, why it glows so brightly, how old it is, how long it will last – all of these take thought and observation.Leon Golub and Jay M. Pasachoff offer an engaging and informative account of what scientists know about the Sun, and the history of these discoveries. Solar astronomers have studied the Sun over the centuries both for its intrinsic interest and in order to use it as a laboratory to reveal the secrets of other stars. The authors discuss the surface of the Sun, including sunspots and their eleven-year cycle, as well as the magnetism that causes them; the Sun’s insides, as studied mainly from seismic waves that astronomers record on its surface; the outer layers of the Sun that we see from Earth only at eclipses and from spacecraft; and space weather, the radiation and particles that we on Earth receive from the Sun in flares or other ejections. Golub and Pasachoff also provide instructions on how to observe the Sun safely, and how to attend and to observe solar eclipses.Illustrated with a wide variety of beautiful solar images, this informative book will appeal to both scientists and a more general readership interested in this star at the centre of our solar system.Published in association with the Science Museum, London.