Modern telescopes of even modest aperture can show thousands of double stars. Many are faint and unremarkable but hundreds are worth searching out. Veteran double-star observer Bob Argyle and his co-authors take a close-up look at their selection of 175 of the night sky's most interesting double and multiple stars. The history of each system is laid out from the original discovery to what we know at the present time about the stars. Wide-field finder charts are presented for each system along with plots of the apparent orbits and predicted future positions for the orbital systems. Recent measurements of each system are included which will help you to decide whether they can be seen in your telescope, as well as giving advice on the aperture needed. Double star observers of all levels of experience will treasure the level of detail in this guide to these jewels of the night sky.

"Observing Visual Double Stars, " written by an astronomer who has discovered almost 2,000 of them, opens the way to amateur astronomers who wish to make a direct and real contribution to science through their avocation.Double or binary stars--pairs of stars that revolve around one another--were once thought to be rare, anomalies among the vast number of normal, isolated stars, like our sun. Now, however, it is believed that many if not "most" stars are mated in binary systems. The visual binaries are those whose component stars are rather distant from each other and require decades or even centuries to complete their orbits. Few professional astronomers devote their time to making the observations needed, over these extended periods, to determine the characteristics of even a small sample of these systems. Thus, if any sizable number of double stars are to be closely scrutinized, their periodic variations plotted, and their orbits and masses calculated, the host of amateur astronomers will have to come to the aid of the professionals by making patient, systematic, night-after-night, year-after-year recorded observations."Observing Visual Double Stars" is designed to train amateurs to become such lookouts. After a historical account of the discovery of binaries (from the sighting of the first in 1650, through the work of the Herschels and the Struves in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, to the present), the author describes the various classes of telescopes and other instruments and the relevant optical principles. This is followed by practical advice on how to use this apparatus to identify double stars and measure their variations over time.The heart of the book--and its technically most advanced section--presents the mathematical techniques that will allow the observer to calculate orbits and masses from the variables that have been measured. A chapter entitled "Voyage to the Country of Double Stars" describes a binary system as it might appear to an observer within it. The book also explains the use of star catalogues and presents its own catalogue of 744 double stars accessible to the amateur observer.

In this important new anthology. Venetria K. Patton and Maureen Honey bring together a comprehensive scicction of texts from the Harlem Renalssance a key period in the literary and cultural history of the cultural life of the United States. The collection revolutionizes our way of viewing this era, as it redresses the ongoing emphasis on the male writers of this time. Double.Take offers a unique, balanced collection of writers - men and women, gay and straight, familiar and obscure. The editors have also included works from a wide variety of genres poetry, short stories, drama, essays, music, and art - allowing readers to understand the true interdisciplinary quality of this cultural movement. Biographical sketches of the authors are provided and most of the places are included in their entirely. Double.Take also includes artwork and illustrations, many of which are from periodicals and have never before been reprinted. Significantly, Double-Take is the first book to include music lyrics to illustrate the interrelation of various art forms. Arranged by author, rather than by genre, this anthology includes works from major Harlem Renaissance figures as well as often-overlooked essay

From the reviews: "I recommend it to anyone with an interest in binary stars who wants to learn more about these fascinating objects." (Jocelyn Tomkin, The Observatory, April 2005)

This book was first published in 2007. Variable stars are those that change brightness. Their variability may be due to geometric processes such as rotation, or eclipse by a companion star, or physical processes such as vibration, flares, or cataclysmic explosions. In each case, variable stars provide unique information about the properties of stars, and the processes that go on within them. This book provides a concise overview of variable stars, including a historical perspective, an introduction to stars in general, the techniques for discovering and studying variable stars, and a description of the main types of variable stars. It ends with short reflections about the connection between the study of variable stars, and research, education, amateur astronomy, and public interest in astronomy. This book is intended for anyone with some background knowledge of astronomy, but is especially suitable for undergraduate students and experienced amateur astronomers who can contribute to our understanding of these important stars.

The nations bordering the North Sea have always been engaged in a dialogue with water. The sea is the source of livelihoods as well as leisure, industry as well as relaxation. Holidaymakers are not the only ones drawn to the seaside: the currency of both painters and photographers is light, and under Northern skies the best light is often to be found where land joins water. In addition, coastal locations often give urban artists an opportunity to observe life in the raw. North Sea provides the overarching theme for this showcase of vintage and contemporary photography, accompanied by paintings and songs, poetry and prose. Its pages capture both the sublimity of nature and a cast of human subjects, whose lives are placed in perspective by the vastness of the sea. In spite of the changes wrought by history, the fascination of the frontier between land and water remains timeless, and these images stand as a striking testament to the relationship between the sea and the people who live and work alongside it.

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