Falkner The Mythology of the Night Sky

An Amateur Astronomer's Guide to the Ancient Greek and Roman Legends
1. Auflage 2011
ISBN: 978-1-4614-0137-7
Verlag: Springer US
Format: PDF
Kopierschutz: 1 - PDF Watermark

E-Book, Englisch, 238 Seiten

Reihe: The Patrick Moore Practical Astronomy Series

The Mythology of the Night Sky is intended primarily for amateur astronomers who would like to know the mythology behind the names of constellations and planets. It deals with the 48 constellations identified by the ancient Greek astronomer Ptolemy, as well as all the planets of our solar system and their moons, which are named after Roman gods.

To assist practical observers the book gives the location and description of each constellation, including named stars and deep-sky objects. Readers are encouraged to observe and image the constellations for themselves, and there is a lot of practical information in this book to help them along the way.

In addition to providing a detailed (and mostly Greek) mythology of the constellations and the vast soap opera that was part of the Ancient Greek pantheon, this book also addresses the planets of the Solar System, which are named after the Roman - not Greek - gods.

Zielgruppe

Popular/general

Autoren/Hrsg.

Falkner, David E.

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Preface.- Chapter 1: Astrophotography Using a Compact Digital Camera.- Chapter 2: An Introduction to Greco-Roman Mythology.- Chapter 3: The Winter Constellations.- Chapter 4: The Legend of Jason and the Argonauts.- Chapter 5: The Spring Constellations.- Chapter 6: The Summer Constellations.- Chapter 7: The Legend of Hercules.- Chapter 8: The Autumn Constellations.- Chapter 9: The Legend of Perseus.- Chapter 10: Planets and Satellites.- Appendix A: Names of the Greek and Roman Gods.- Appendix B: Ptolemy's Constellations.- Appendix C: The Messier Objects.- Appendix D: NGC/IC Objects by Constellation.- Appendix E: The Greek Alphabet.- Bibliography.

Über Autor(innen)

David Falkner first became interested in astronomy as a pre-teen when his father took him to a show at the Holcolm Planetarium in Indianapolis, IN. He became hooke and has loved astronomy ever since. When he was a teenager he inherited a homemade Newtonian telescope that needed the primary mirror. He ground a 6" mirror and completed his first telescope, which gave him years of pleasure observing the heavens. In 1973 he joined the U.S. Navy and became an officer in 1980. In 1986 as a Naval Officer stationed in Monterey, California, he became involved with the Friends of MIRA (Monterey Institute for Research in Astronomy) where he conducted outreach to local schools associated with the return of Halley's Comet. He retired from the navy in 1993 and settled in Minnesota Astronomical Society.