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EDITORIAL INFORMATION

The Photographic Atlas of the Stars presents the whole of the night sky in 45 full-page colour photographs taken through a 35 mm lens, so the field of view approximates to that of the naked eye. Each photograph is accompanied on the facing page by a map based on a negative print of that photograph, labelled to show the main stars of the constellations. The correspondence between photograph, map, and the way that region of sky actually appears, makes the use of this atlas completely intuitive - it is the first true photographic atlas. To compile this atlas, HJP Arnold travelled extensively to dark-sky sites in both hemispheres. Paul Doherty created the maps, and each double-page spread of map and photograph is followed by an intriguing commentary by Patrick Moore,describing the stars and objects as they actually appear in the photograph.

(Extracted from the dust jacket)

GENERAL TABLE OF CONTENTS

-Contents.

-Foreword by Sir Arnold Wolfendale FRS.

-Introduction by HJP Arnold.

-Introduction to the Star Maps.

-Whole Sky Map.

-Ultra Wide-Angle Maps A-F.

-The Atlas (Map 1-45).

-Messier Catalogue.

-Caldwell Catalogue.

-Glossary

-Further Reading.

-Constellations.

-Index to Named Bright Stars.

-Index to Photographs.

OUR REVIEW

For the aficionados to astronomy, this is one of this kind of books that everybody should have. Despite the immense usefulness of astronomic atlases for the observation of the sky, many of them display a certain "unreality" that confuses those who wish to put into practice what they read about. With The Photographic Atlas of Stars, the problem is solved to a great extent, since besides displaying the stellar maps, these are at all times confronted with their photographic counterparts, which show us, in the simplest of ways, the true aspect of the sky as seen by optical means.

These are wide range views, taken with simple objectives of 35 mm, so the viewing field is practically identical with that of our eye. It is true that the photographic procedure provides us with a greater sensitivity, presenting a great number of stars, yet at the same time, from this wealth we can obtain additional information that can be very useful indeed when using the telescope or the binoculars. In all 45 photographs in full color are included, covering the entire nocturnal sky. Each one is accompanied by a graphic map in the same scale, and listed with information and data on the main stars and visible objects, ordered according to their types (double stars, variable stars, star clusters, etc) Each map is preceded by a concise descriptive text (mentioning the constellations covered in each view), a very useful feature to site us and appreciate in full detail that which we have before our eyes. There also are, at the end of the book, the Messier and Caldwell catalogues, as well as the lists of constellations, most brilliant stars, a glossary, bibliography, etc.