J. Brit. Astron. Assoc., 106, 2, 1996
Cambridge University Press, 1995. ISBN 0-521-49643-8. Pp 252, £24.95 (hbk).
reviewed by Roger O'Brien
The first impression of this book is that it is big and handsome – too much text for coffee table, but eminently dippable. However, it does have faults: a regrettable tendency to overuse the phrase 'the tiny moon Io' is one and I noticed the rotation period of Uranus quoted as seven instead of seventeen hours. The text can be a little lumpy: long sentences are not often improved by adding a further almost parenthetical clause.
Duty done, I have covered the minor faults and now can sing the book's praises. The text is mostly clear and always relevant. There is some remarkable honesty, as with 'The Hubble Space Telescope had the best spherical aberration money could buy'. The whole story is there from suggestions by Hermann Oberth, through the design and construction stages to the dreadful shock of the faulty mirror. With the 'COSTAR' mission and the dramatic (and very well illustrated) improvement in imaging, the book takes flight. There is plenty of technical material, but the general reader is unlikely ever to be really daunted and the better informed will find what they want.
Of course, it is not an expert's book and does not pretend to be. Judging by reactions at evening classes, my fellow amateur astronomers will delight in the wealth of beautiful and exciting pictures. Several remarked on the welcome fact that no picture is printed across the central binding. Wide margins give a feeling of space and leave room for proper explanatory captions under the illustrations. It is not usually a reviewer's task to comment on price, but this book costs less than £25 and that seems to me to be a bargain.
Every phase of Hubble observing gets its due. I was particularly pleased to see the emphasis on monitoring planets and the small, but consistent amateur involvement in observing programmes. The final sections deal with the cosmological investigations which are behind the choice of the telescope's name. The regular programme of servicing missions, with their steady updating of the equipment, reminds us that this is a long-term mission with very wide aims. Finally, there is a useful glossary and concise index.
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