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Many books cover permanent astronomical objects, but few consider transient, out-of-the-ordinary astronomical phenomena. This book covers a wide range of topics, from the partly-predictable to the totally unpredictable. At one end: of the scale, it gives advice on the best ways to observe meteors, and at the other end:, it describes the best methods for undertaking painstaking searches for new comets and supernovae. The book also includes material about phenomena that occur in the lower atmosphere, such as "ozone eaters", nacreous clouds, and solar and lunar halos.
Inhaltsverzeichnis
1 Introduction.- 2 Meteors.- 2.1 The Leonids: A Storm Coming?.- 2.2 The Perseids: The Unexpected Rise of "Old Faithful".- 2.3 Other Showers in Outburst.- 2.4 Fireballs.- 3 Aurorae and other Atmospheric Phenomena.- 3.1 Auroral Storms.- 3.2 Noctilucent Clouds.- 3.3 Synthetic Atmospheric Phenomena.- 4 The Sun.- 4.1 Observing the Sun in White Light.- 4.2 Monochromatic-light Observations: The Sun in Hydrogen-alpha.- 4.3 Solar Eclipses.- 5 The Moon.- 5.1 Transient Lunar Phenomena.- 5.2 Lunar Occultations.- 5.3 Lunar Eclipses.- 6 The Planets.- 6.1 Venus.- 6.2 Mars.- 6.3 Jupiter.- 6.4 Saturn.- 6.5 Planetary Occultations.- 7 Small Bodies of the Solar System.- 7.1 Asteroids.- 7.2 The Galilean Satellites of Jupiter.- 7.3 Saturn's Satellites.- 8 Comets.- 8.1 The Nature and Origin of Comets.- 8.2 Comet Discoveries.- 8.3 Observing Comets.- 8.4 Comets in Outburst.- 8.5 Ion-tail Disconnections.- 8.6 The Great Comets of 1996 and 1997.- 9 Variable Stars.- 9.1 Eclipsing Binaries.- 9.2 Cataclysmic Variables.- 9.3 Recurrent Novae.- 9.4 R Coronae Borealis Stars.- 10 Novae and Supernovae.- 10.1 Novae.- 10.2 Supernovae.- 11 Information Sources.- 11.1 Atlases.- 11.2 Catalogues.- 11.3 Ephemerides, Annual Handbooks and News Sources.- 11.4 Software.- 11.5 The Internet.
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REVIEWS OF ASTRONOMICAL TOOLS
"OBSERVING METEORS, COMETS, SUPERNOVAE is a practical guide for any amateur astronomer and is highly recommended."
