Book Description

A night-by-night guide to studying the moon.

The moon is usually the first celestial body that captures a stargazer's attention and imagination. Throughout history, the moon has endured as a universal subject of myth, poems, entertainment and intense scientific endeavor.

In clear language and with full color photographs and illustrations throughout, Moon Observer's Guide offers practical guidance to amateur astronomers viewing Earth's only natural satellite. There is valuable advice for observing the Moon with the naked eye, binoculars and telescopes. Central to this book is a detailed 28-day guide to lunar features. Lunar geology and the various causes of physical features, such as craters and volcanoes, are described.

Also included are: - Guidelines for choosing binoculars and telescopes - Ways of recording observations - Digital and conventional photography - Using Internet resources, personal computers and lunar software programs - Safety tips for observing the moon during solar and lunar eclipses - Detailed moon maps

This book is an ideal reference for the growing numbers of beginning astronomers. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Well intentioned, but maps inadaquate
This book has quite a bit of information on various lunar features. Unfortunately the included maps are very small and hard to read. Even worse, some features mentioned in the text are not even labeled in the maps. On the other hand, the labeling of the maps is overdone, and the format of showing slivers of the moon (centering around the terminator) makes it hard to get one's bearings even with an outline globe showing where the current map is featuring.

Given the shortcomings of the maps, the text could be just a tad more clear as to where one feature is in relation to another. Read the book slowly to get the maximum out of the descriptions. Other parts of the book regarding lunar geology and general observing are helpful. Get a good moon map or maybe a good magnifying glass to get the most from this book. ... Read more

Book Description

How did life begin on Earth? Is it confined to our planet? Will humans one day be able to travel long distances in space in search of other life forms? Written by three experts in the space arena, Looking for Life, Searching the Solar System aims to answer these and other intriguing questions. Beginning with what we understand of life on Earth, it describes the latest ideas about the chemical basis of life as we know it, and how they are influencing strategies to search for life elsewhere. It considers the ability of life, from microbes to humans, to survive in space, on the surface of other planets, and be transported from one planet to another. It looks at the latest plans for missions to search for life in the Solar System, and how these are being influenced by new technologies, and current thinking about life on Earth. ... Read more

Book Description

Two hundred years after the first asteroid was discovered, asteroids can no longer be considered mere points of light in the sky. Spacecraft missions, advanced Earth-based observation techniques, and state-of-the-art numerical models are continually revealing the detailed shapes, structures, geological properties, and orbital characteristics of these smaller denizens of our solar system. This volume brings together the latest information obtained by spacecraft, combined with astronomical observations and theoretical modeling, to present our best current understanding of asteroids and the clues they reveal for the origin and evolution of the solar system.This collective knowledge, prepared by a team of more than one hundred international authorities on asteroids, includes new insights into asteroid-meteorite connections, possible relationships with comets, and the hazards posed by asteroids colliding with Earth. The book's contents include reports on surveys based on remote observation and summaries of physical properties; results of in situ exploration; studies of dynamical, collisional, cosmochemical, and weathering evolutionary processes; and discussions of asteroid families and the relationships between asteroids and other solar system bodies. Two previous Space Science Series volumes have established standards for research into asteroids. Asteroids III carries that tradition forward in a book that will stand as the definitive source on its subject for the next decade. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

This is extreme!
As a Mars enthusiast, I originally bought this book because I just couldn't find anything really new in any other kind of book.

I knew some of this book would be outdated. Indeed, it predates by a few years PathFinder, Global Surveyor and the brand new Odyssey. But you just cannot invalidate 1500 pages of science in a few years, so I bought it.

Well, I was not disappointed! There is one (or more) chapter for every topic you could think of about Mars. And each chapter contains tons of scientifically accurate data, presented in an completely neutral way. Basically, everything is new, or if I thought I knew it, the book just goes way further.

This book is not for the casual reader. You must be highly motivated and/or and technically-educated to make the most of it.

And, of course, you must realize that this book is only a summary of what you could learn about the planet if you had the time (and mental capacity) to handle all of it.

And, you should also be aware that this book is only one book about one planet. Because the Arizona Press has "a few" other books, about "Mercury" (800 pages), "Venus II" (1500 pages), "Uranus" (1076 pages), "Neptune and Triton" (1249), "Pluto and Charon" (728 pages), etc.

As soon as I have finished "Mars", I will go and buy the rest (one at a time), because you just can't beat this collection.

Mars - The Viking "Bible"
If you want to seriously know things about Mars, our "brother" planet, you must have this book on your desk. This volume is totally indispensible for serious Mars students and is the distilled wisdom of the Mars Viking Missions, plus eveything else that went before.

Although new data is emerging about the Red planet, you cannot take it in isolation. The new data shows details within the framework of the old Viking-era Mars, which you must understand to be able to communicate with workers in the field.

Some new conceps and insights render parts of this volume dated, but it is dispassionate and unbiassed so the basic data and images are presented before too much interpretation is overlaid.

If you don't have this book, you aren't trying.

The only reason I gave this book 4-Star rather than 5-Star award is because it is written on a high technical/scientific level which renders it difficult for non-scientific readers. For scientists, it probably rates a Six!

Quality Mars reference
As the editors state, it is the next best thing to the full list of scientific literature about Mars (the list of references they refer to is 95 pages long, or about 3,000 publications). The next best thing is just fine by me. The editors also state that it is at a level appropriate for graduate study (like myself), however it would also suit a keen enthusiast.

As a reference book it isn't riveting bed time reading but, as a reference book, it is top quality and for its intended readers it is excellent. ... Read more

Book Description

In this revolutionary work, Scarborough takes us from the Copernican idea of our sun-centered Solar System to the recent discoveries of giant exoplanets as he seeks to do no less than rebuild the foundations of knowledge of the origins and evolution of planets.A retired researcher, he offers new answers to questions that have puzzled philosophers for centuries:How did Planet Earth come into being?How and why did the planetary orbits of our Solar System form in a mathematical pattern?The answers will cause scientists to rethink beliefs about the origins and evolution of planets.

Scarborough addresses these profound questions with powerful substantive evidence that voids the need for speculative uncertainties now common in current theories of planet formation.The book opens with an insightful and startling account of his solution to the new Fourth Law of Planetary Motion explaining how the nebulous planetary masses attained their orbital spacing around the sun.With Kepler's Three Laws of Planetary Motion, the Four Laws reveal the explosive, dynamic origin of our Solar System some five billion years ago, and thus challenging the modified Laplace accretion concept of planet formation.

The author then gives definitive insights into how and why each planet evolves through five common stages of evolution in full accord with size.

Reviews (1)

Touches a wide variety of exciting topics.
I'm not a physicist, and I barely qualify as an amateur astronomer.Nonetheless, I found this paper to be a fascinating read.Scarborough goes into a lot of depth showing the equations and physical laws that governed the formation of our solar system and the planets within.He makes a compelling case for fuels (gas, oil, and coal) being natural, rather than "fossil" in nature.There were at least 5 concepts presented that I was not previously aware of.On the whole, I am content having read this book, and would recommend it (although not overwhelmingly) to friends.Here are a few things that kept this review from being a universally positive one: - As a layman reading a technical book, a certain amount of implicit trust is given to the author.Without little previous knowledge of the material, almost everything read must be taken as fact.However, there are certain tell-tale artifacts in this book that lead me to become slightly skeptical of the work as a whole.Scarborough seems more concerned with pushing his own views than presenting the facts in an unbiased, critical manner.For all I know, everything he said is true.By the end of the book though, I accepted the concepts less readily than when I started. - Although only 5 years old, the book is becoming dated.To my knowledge, there are at least 30 extrasolar planets known to exist.At the time of writing, less than 5 had been discovered.Since many of the concepts hinge on general trends of these planets, incomplete data is not a good thing. - I found at least 1 spelling and three gramatical errors. - The illustrations, though relevant, would have been nicer in color.Gotta keep the printing costs down though. - I expect scientific papers written after 1990 to use metric measurements uniformly.This paper did not. - Colloquial expressions were used more often than I would expect in this type of document. - Maybe I missed something, but the final chapter (Big Bangs vs. Little Bangs) seemed rushed and incomplete.

Don't let these things prevent you from getting this book.On the whole, I enjoyed it. ... Read more

Book Description

Meteorites and Their Parent Planets provides an engrossing overview of a highly interdisciplinary field--the study of extraterrestrial materials. The second edition of this successful book has been thoroughly revised, and describes the nature of meteorites, where they come from, and how they get to Earth. Meteorites offer important insights into processes in stars and in interstellar regions, the birth of our solar system, the formation and evolution of planets and smaller bodies, and the origin of life. The first edition was immensely popular with meteorite collectors, scientists and science students in many fields, as well as amateur astronomers. In this second edition all of the illustrations have been updated and improved, many sections have been expanded and modified based on discoveries in the past decade, and a new final chapter on the importance of meteorites has been added. Everyone with an interest in meteorites will want a copy of this book. ... Read more

Reviews (6)

One of the best books on the subject
Really a MUST-have for the serious meteorite collector. Lots of scientifical informations, but very readable.

Fascinating - I was amazed at the power of geochemistry
I'm a geologist who loves to find good summaries of geology / planetary science topics, and "Meteorites and their Parent Planets" is one of the best I've found. While I've always been more interested in "geometric" topics like structural geology, McSween's book made geochemistry and cosmochemistry come alive like I'd never imagined. He weaves a fascinating tale of the amazing deductions that have been made from analyses of meteorites. "Compositional" sciences like petrology and geochemistry used to make my eyes glaze over, but now I think that if I had it to do over again, I might go into geochemistry or meteoritics! I look forward to reading McSween's other books.

A great book which I highly recommend!!!
Informative reading and great photos. This book makes a great addition to your meteorite book library.

Great book for beginners and experienced collectors
I think that this book is very well written and easy for the beginner to understand. Lots of great information.

Great Book for beginners and experienced alike
As a meteorite dealer, I highly recommend this book for collectors to expand their knowledge. ... Read more

Book Description

Between 1920 and 1960 astronomers began working with scientists in other fields in order to better understand the nature of the solar system. Researchers made wide-ranging attempts to solve such problems as the nature of lunar and terrestrial craters, the origin of comets and meteors, and the birth of the solar system. While often tinged with controversy, this work provided the foundation for planetary science in the space age. Exploiting previously unused archival material, Ronald Doel investigates this emerging interdisciplinary scientific community and its influence on astronomy, meteorology, geology, and geophysics.He examines how studies in planetary science were influenced by shifts in institutional mandates, new research techniques, and Cold War government-military funding. Above all, the book explores an important branch of what is now called the environmental sciences. This book will interest historians of science as well as astronomers. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Packed with detail
This is a densely written account of the development of solar system science in the US in the early 20th century. If you're a science historian, this is an excellent reference, as it is stuffed full of names, dates and detailed references. For example, it provides a blow-by-blow (almost literally!) account of the bitter dispute between Urey and Kuiper over hot vs cold moon theories. It also provides some information on the rift between US and UK scientists.

If you're looking for a book on solar system astronomy that explains what we think we know about our celestial backyard however, look elsewhere. This is a book of record, placing people, theories and dates down on paper for posterity. It can be a bit frustrating to read if you're not already intimately familiar with the players, as there are dozens of names to remember and lots of academic minutia.

Bottom line: a good book for academics and students, not recommended for the layman or general interest reader. ... Read more

Book Description

"The book is dedicated to the "curious, imaginative and intelligent" reader and for them and anyone else wanting to get rapidly "up to speed" on experimental solar physics this text can be thoroughly recommended...The Sun from Space is notable for a number of special features. There is a bibliography par excellence covering some 60 pages. So as not to disrupt the flow of the text, details of background or supporting topics are dealt within "Focus Boxes" which work well. For me, however, the crowning special feature is the chronology of significant events in the field given at the end of each section." -The Observatory

The Sun from Space is a comprehensive account of solar astrophysics and how our perception and knowledge of this star have gradually evolved as mankind has elucidated ever more of its mysteries. The emphasis is on the last decade, which has seen three successful solar spacecraft missions: SOHO, Ulysses and Yohkoh. Together these have confirmed many aspects of the SUN and its output, and provided new clues to the numerous open questions that remain. The author, a leading researcher in the field, writes in a clear and concise style. Known also for his famous books "Astrophysical Formulae", "Sun, Earth and Sky", and the prize-winning "Wanderers in Space", he has succeeded once again in addressing a complex scientific topic in a very approachable way. Hence, this generously illustrated book, whilst primarily addressing students, will also be of interest to a broader readership covering all levels from the amateur to the expert. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

good info., poorly written
Decent information for beginners to the field of solar physics.
However, in a couple ways this book is a fine example of how NOT
to write a science book. Lang states numbers and units in a very distracting way: for instance, "1.5 thousand meters" and on a diagram of the Sun, 15 M(degree sign) for the central temperature.

On page 73 we read, about the Sun's oscillations: "That interval is similar to the separation between the most intense contractions during child birth, at least during the birth of my children."

OK, did we really need to know that in an _astrophysics_ text?

Solar astronomy for the educated layman
Kenneth Lang, the well-known author of Astrophysical Formulae, wrote this excellently-illustrated introductory book about the Sun's atmosphere. The level of the book is appropriate for an "educated layman" who is interested in the field of solar astrophysics. I read it as background for the incipient STEREO mission. It concentrates on the new knowledge from three recent space missions: SOHO, Ulysses, and Yohkoh; but it also includes data from many other spacecraft, ground (and underground) observatories, and historical data.

The book is organized well. It has sections on the three space missions, the space environment, helioseismology, the corona, the solar wind, solar activity, and the Sun-Earth connection. Each chapter concludes with a chronology of important scientific discoveries in the field. The book also includes side boxes containing key concepts in understanding the physics described in the text. Apparently these were included so the text might be used for a undergraduate course; but the academic level of these side boxes is so inconsistent I do not think this book alone could be used as a text. The book concludes with a set of Internet addresses (it is a pity that the movies that have been made of solar phenomena cannot be incorporated into a printed book) and an extensive list of references to original papers.

The book's strength is its illustrations, which cover almost every observable aspect of the Sun. Many of these are taken from seminal papers in the field, and the author is careful to give credit where credit is due. If the book has a weakness, it is this scrupulousness in attributing discoveries to scientists: the author sometimes presents the discoveries in piecemeal fashion. He thus sometimes fails to present an entire coherent picture of a phenomenon, while presenting parts of the picture many times. He also has an annoying idiosyncrasy of writing out powers of ten and units (e.g., "50,000 to 1.2 million meters per second") rather than using an appropriate abbreviation (50 - 1200 km/s); I often found myself converting his writing in my head to get a feel for the numbers.

In general, the book is an excellent introduction to this field and I recommend it for that purpose. It is not adequate preparation for someone wishing to enter the field of solar physics, but it is not a coffee-table paperweight either. It gives the reader the ability to understand what solar scientists are talking about, and what the target science is for the various missions in NASA's Sun-Earth Connection enterprise. ... Read more

Book Description

The startling Antarctic discovery...The revelations about life on Mars...Shocking new proof about who we really are!

From outer space to deep prehistory, from ancient Egypt to the planet Mars, the conclusions in Martian Genesis will astound you.

At last, science writer Herbie Brennan provides answers to the questions that have confounded scientists for years--including a startling solution to the mystery surrounding the rock face found on Mars. His carefully researched, impeccably documented conclusions may change history forever.

Find out when, where, and how the human race first came to be--millions of years earlier than previously believed! Discover the shocking archaeological evidence of Martian ancestors that has been ignored--or suppressed--in popular theories of evolution. Encounter new revelations made in photos taken from space...eye-opening evidence of hi-tech artifacts millennia old...fascinating discoveries from Antarctica, Siberia, the ocean floor...and more. Read about:

Unexplained fossils! Evidence that people actually walked with the dinosaurs...wearing shoes!
Amazing ancient technology! How the pyramids were lit...by electricity!
Lost prehistoric civilizations! How someone built a massive concrete block wall in Oklahoma...312 million years ago!
Life on Mars...when it flourished, what happened to it, what it left behind!

... Read more

Reviews (8)

Not bad but for beginners to the subject
Brennan recounts the old stories of ancient archaeology through most of this book. He sites a lot of bible quotes to reinforce his contention that we came from Mars but doesn't really give any hard evidence as to how this was possible. This book is basically a collection of other books that I have read that were more interesting. More for people who don't know too much about ancient archaeology and what to start out with the basics.

Same old drivel
This is yet another New Age variation of the old ancient astronauts theme, and this one is worse than most of the others. Brennan presents the following theory: various archaeological anomalies indicate that human civilization is much older than what is claimed by conventional knowledge, and the explanation for this is that our civilization was created by refugees from Mars, fleeing their own doomed world. All the classic elements are included: the face on Mars, the pyramids in Egypt, ancient technology, the Golden Age myths, Atlantis, von Däniken, and so on, and so on.
Now, it is true that there are a lot of intriguing mysteries concerning the past of humanity. By no means do we have, at the present stage of our ignorance (to quote a phrase often used by Sir Arthur C. Clarke), a complete and accurate picture of how civilization arose, and there are still a lot of amazing discoveries to be made, especially considering the enormous areas that have yet to know the touch of the archaeologist's spade (including the Antarctic, and the ocean floors). But that is precisely the point. We simply do not know the full story, yet, of how mankind developed his civilization - and what we must do, then, is to keep trying to find out, by using real science and real scientific research. It may well be that human civilization is indeed much older than we presently think, and I for one am waiting with great interest for future discoveries to rival the past ones of ancient Babylon and Sumer. But I think it is safe to say that we will never find the archaeological remains of the spaceships used by the ancient Martians to come to Earth.
It is a fact that there is no face nor any visible ruins on the surface of Mars (which, of course, doesn't in the slightest deter the conspiracy theorists), and it is also exceedingly unlikely that Mars has ever supported anything other than very primitive forms of life (and it is, unfortunately, most likely that Mars has always been a dead and sterile world). Some argue that Mars may once have been very different from what it is today. The geography of Mars, with a volcano three times higher than Mt. Everest, and a canyon large enough to span the length of the United States, indicate the possibility that Mars was once struck by a "planet killer," i.e., a huge asteroid or comet (this has been suggested by, among others, Graham Hancock). It is conceivable, however unlikely, that a flourishing civilization may have existed on Mars prior to this hypothetical disaster, and that it was wiped out when the huge rock from space struck (the same fate lies in store for us, sooner or later...). But even if there really had been intelligent life on Mars once, that still doesn't change a thing. There is not a shred of evidence to indicate that Earth has ever been visited by Martians, let alone that humans today are descendants of such visitors. And how would such visitors have survived? How could an intelligent and complex life-form that had originally developed on Mars adapt to life on Earth? If humans originally came from Mars, shouldn't it be obvious to scientists today that humans are, biologically, radically different from all other animals on Earth? Instead, it is very clear that human DNA is of Earth-origin. It is true that there are some as yet hard-to-explain anomalies (that are not even mentioned by Brennan) about human evolution, but it is very clear that humans did develop on Earth, since our DNA is so similar to other Earth mammals.
Of course, arguing about this question is pointless. We will soon enough know the truth about both present and past life on Mars, once and for all, with the armada of probes that are headed for Mars this year. And if that doesn't answer the questions, then we will only have to wait until humans eventually arrive to Mars in person, which should happen within the next few decades.
The back cover blurb claims that Brennan's conclusions are "carefully researched" and "impeccably documented." Talk about false advertising! It is clear that Brennan has done absolutely no original research of his own. All he has done is to read what has already been written by various other New Age enthusiasts, and then lump it all together into a synthesis. The whole thing is extremely poorly argued, or not argued at all, since Brennan only piles together a loose mass of "evidence" that, for the most part, have absolutely nothing to do with either Mars or the origin of civilization. As for the "impeccable" documentation, it is a mystery to me how a book lacking not only a bibliography but also any kind of source references at all, can be said to be "impeccably documented." Brennan makes assertion after assertion, but never backs them up with source citations (aside from a few notes scattered haphazardly here and there). To claim that this book is researched is a disgrace.
All in all, the book is poorly written, in Brennan's typically disjointed and extremely brief style of writing. The short chapters are further divided into numbered subsections, some of which are only a few lines in length. Usually, these sections end in dramatic statements or "revelations," intended to strike home some point that Brennan wishes to make. Too bad there are never any facts or reasoned argumentation to back up these points. The only redeeming quality about the whole sorry mess is that the subject matter is interesting, and you can thus find some enjoyment reading about all the many mysteries of our past, if you don't take any of Brennan's "conclusions" seriously.

Little connection between the title and what is delivered.
Although this book does present some intriquing archeological anomalies, and thought-provoking speculation, it fails to even come close to delivering the goods. The author revisits ground well-trodden ('face on Mars', ancient mysteries, mythology-as-fact), but offers nothing new. It is disjointed, and seems to have been put together hastily. Sub-par.

Am I supposed to believe this?
How half of the archaeological sites mentioned in this book have anything to do with Mars is beyond me. If we came from Mars, then don't you think there'd be some kind of oral or written history about it? There's an oral history of Noah's flood, and of Jesus allegedly rising from the dead, but there's no mention of us coming to Earth from Mars. How could people forget such a momentous occasion?

The whole premise of this book is solely based on one picture. Overall this book sucks.

Quick, compelling, well-researched
Brennan's book is far from the definitive book on possible extraterrestrial intervention in our species' history. But it's surprisingly cogent, fast reading that raises important questions without insulting the reader's intelligence. Brennan's thesis isn't developed into a working hypothesis; he leaves this thorny task for others to unravel. But the material here is certainly worth the few hours it takes to read "Martian Genesis." ... Read more

Book Description

This book tells of the billions of wandering objects, from dust-particles to moon-sized lumps of rock, and of the random but vital roles they play in the drama of our evolving solar system.

To human beings on Earth, comets have always been objects of mystery and terror. This fear, once dismissed as superstition, is sometimes justified; comets really can bring catastrophes in their wake. Research show that comets are close relatives of both the space dust which forms meteors or shooting stars, and of the larger, inert rocks -- the asteroids -- which circle the Sun by the millions. Left over from the formation of the solar system, all of these objects have threatened Earth with massive impacts and "nuclear winters." However, they have also been part of the process by which the Solar System renews itself -- we may owe our very existence to the impact that destroyed the dinosaurs 65 million years ago.

The threat of collision with the Earth has placed comets and asteroids at the top of the agenda for astronomers, the public, and, increasingly, for governments. Comets, Meteors, and Asteroids presents a fascinating and insightful exploration of these space wanderers of the cosmos. ... Read more

Book Description

The luminosity of the sun governs the temperatures of the planets. Yet the solar forcing, or driving, of climate, primarily due to changes in solar radiation, has never been well documented. Recent satellite measurements have shown that solar radiation varies as a function of time and wavelength, a concept that has been hypothesized for the past two centuries and has recently become a major topic with all the attention paid to global warming. This book reviews the physics of the concept of solar forcing, from its beginnings in the early 1800's and apparent success in the 1870's, to its near demise in the 1950's and recent resurgence. Since its emphasis is on solar variations as a driver for climate change, with only a brief discussion of other mechanisms, the book will be of most interest to students in climate studies. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Seekers of Truth Should Start Here
To those Seekers of Truth interested in the facts surrounding the "Global Warming" debate should start with this book. This is a very accessible, very well written book. First and foremost it establishes the historical record for climate change. I'd supplement that by pointing out that 100 years of data doesn't establish any significant trend worth talking about considering the extreme variations in climate known over hundreds of thousands of years.

The book goes into great detail regarding a number of possible factors that may affect climate. No attempt is made to favor one factor over another beyond an examination of how well each correlates to the actual record. However, the data does prove quite skeptical for human-induced climatic change. After all, how many SUVs were there during the Medieval Warm Period (~800 AD to ~1300 AD)? What drove the extreme cooling of the Younger Dryas (~12,700 years ago)? What drove the extreme warming that ended that period of cooling?

Of most interest to me, was the correlation of sun spot cycles, and more importantly the long-term record of sun spot minima and maxima within those cycles over hundreds of years, with climate. Also, of great interest are detailed explanations showing how variations in solar output energy and distribution with respect to wavelength, may force amplified climatic responses.

In all, I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in the truth about the factors forcing climatic changes. You'll never hear any of this from those with a vested financial interest in scare mongering. Nor do I put much stock in the social scientists making up a super majority of those scientists said to be most convinced that humanity is the major cause of Global Warming.

Nor will you hear any hint of it from the scientifically bankrupt major media outlets. These ideas simply cannot be crammed into an 11-second sound bite. But, more importantly sensationalism is the stock in trade of TV news shows. The scientific-illiterati amongst the talking heads will blame drivers in SUVs for on-screen images of floods and storms rather something which they cannot possibly control, such as the Sun.

A cooment from the first author
Although more than 5 years have passed since this book was published, it has held up rather well. The reason for that is that it takes a historical perspective and the history portions of the book do not not become rapidly dated. The author can be reached at dhoyt@toast.net if anyone has questions or comments.

A skeptical view and enjoyable read of a "hot" topic.
In "The Role of the Sun in Climate Change" the reader finds an entertaining tale told by two scientists. Often in today's debate on global climate change, readers are forced to listen to politicians or the media. This book serves as a refreshing change from that paradigm. Not only is the reader presented with a skeptical view of the facts of global climate change, but the reader may also enjoy the writing style which one rarely finds in writings by scientists. The opening sentence of Chapter 1 sounds like a novel when these scientists describe how one scientist, from an era long gone, went about his daily observing. They even display a sense of humor in their chapters and their titles, as in Chapter 9, "Cyclomania" where they set out to describe many of the different cyclic processes involved in both the sun and climate, and how so many cycles can be used or abused. This book can be enjoyed while commuting to work (as long as you are not the driver) as well as an introduction for serious studies. It contains an extensive bibliography.

I BELIEVE THE SUN IS DISAPPEARING
I HAVE NOT READ THIS BOOK YET, BUT I BELIEVE, THE SUN IS DISAPPEARING, AT LEAST IN WHERE I LIVE, SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA... WHY? 1) WE BECOME MORE AND MORE INDOORS; 2)WE DON'T BREATHE MUCH INTO OPEN AIR AND WE DON'T BREATHE MUCH FROM THE OPEN AIR; 3)WE SPEND SO MUCH TIME IN AUTO; WE BECOME 100% PALE RIDER ALMOST 4) WE SPEND SO MUCH TIME IN FRONT OF TV/PC; 5) WE DON'T EVEN CARE MUCH ABOUT WE ARE HAVING SUN OR NOT ... I GUESS SUN ALSO HAS EMOTIONS, IF WE DON'T PAY ATTENTION TO HIM, WHY SHOULD HE TO US? ... Read more

Book Description

Written by a leading planetary scientist, this engaging book tells the remarkable story of how our solar system came into existence and provides an expert tour of the Earth, its planetary neighbors and other planetary systems. In a whirlwind adventure, we explore how the formation of mighty Jupiter dominated the solar system, why Mars is so small, where comets come from, how rings form around planets, why asteroids exist and why Pluto isn't a planet at all. En route, we discover the role of chance events in shaping the course of the history of our solar system. Dramatic collisions, for example, caused the tilts and spins of the planets, the extinction of the dinosaurs and the rise of man. Finally, we look at how suitable Earth is for harboring life, what other planetary systems look like and whether we are alone in the cosmos. For all those interested in understanding our solar system and its place in the cosmos, this is a lucid and compelling read. Stuart Taylor is the recipient of numerous academic awards, including the Norman L. Bowen Award from the American Geophysical Union for his important contributions to our understanding of the origins and early history of the Earth and Moon.In 1997, Asteroid 5670 was named Rosstaylor in his honor.He is the author of Solar System Evolution (Cambridge, 1992). ... Read more

Reviews (6)

A fascinating narrative of Solar System creation
Having just finished the book, and enjoying it immensely, I was curious what the general consensus was on this work. I was a bit surprised at the negativity aimed at the book.

The negative reviews appear to come from students dismayed with the writing style. They should have read the Introduction. For more scholarly purposes, Taylor refers the reader to his more properly cited and thorough work, Solar System Evolution (1992). This volume's style is more akin to a museum tour, with meandering asides and conjectures. Taylor's references to subjects past and further-on are no trouble, if one reads to book front-to-back. I can see how students picking through the book "salad-bar" style would become frustrated.

For a book intended for the layman, the style is very effective. As a casual read, it was intruiging and entertaining. Taylor brought me to a more comprehensive view of our Solar System, and its strange members. He goes to great efforts to keep his writing accessible, and scientific jargon to a manageable level.

As a nit-picky student of English, I'll confess to not seeing all the "typos" mentioned in prior reviews. Either I missed them, or the other readers are in error. One glaring error I did notice was a picture and caption reference to a "Brontosaurus." This term has been out of favor for decades, and is only seen in books for children. The correct word is "Apatosaurus."

For a good view of the present state of knowledge of the origins of the Solar System, I'd recommend this book.

Wayne Gralian
Wayne's World of Books / Krakow RPGs

Some scientist just can't write for non-scientists
Taylor has written one of the worst science books I have ever read. If I didn't have to finish it for class, I would have put (nay, THREW) it down before the first chapter was over. I'm not criticizing the science in the book, which I believe is quite good, since Taylor is a well-respected planetary geologist. The problems with this book, rather, are primarily grammatical and stylistic. First, and most ingratiating, Taylor keeps telling us that he will explain things "later". I lost count of the number of times the sentence "More on that later." ends a paragraph. Secondly, there are a number of typographical errors in the book, mainly the kind discovered only by human proofreaders (like using "from" instead of "form"). It seems as if Taylor just did a spell check on his final draft and then sent it off to the printers. Thirdly, there is no flow to the book. Sentences are, for the most part, simple. Paragraphs and sections follow one another with apparently no connection, like a laundry list of information. Unlike a novel, the reader of this kind of book should have some idea where it is going and what grand statement is being proved. This doesn't happen. Fourthly, Taylor spends too much time explaining simple concepts but not enough time on difficult concepts. He also thinks that annoying pop culture references will clarify things. Finally, otherwise this list would be much to long, Taylor doesn't show any interest in his subject. I know he IS interested, since he spent his entire life studying our solar system, but you wouldn't get that idea from the book. This must be due to bad writing. Sorry Taylor, but you ... at it.

An interesting jaunt through the solar system
Destiny or Chance is an interesting look at the question of how we got here. Whether or not we are here by accident is an important question as it deeply influences how we view ourselves and other people. Taylor takes us through many (what he sees as) amazing coincidences that got us here in an interesting journey. The order in which he presents the material is a bit different, but it is logical in retrospect.

As for the conclusions he offers, I must respectfully disagree with him. He shows clearly that our presence here is either the most amazing of coincidences or a clear miracle, but he chooses the coincidence. He then spends a little time complaining that we don't spend our limited time here better. I find that inconsistent, though -- if we are here by accident, there is no higher calling to direct our lives. It is only if we were put here by a higher being (read, God) that anyone has a right to say that better should be expected of us.

Nevertheless, it is an interesting read full of sometimes startling facts.

Fascinating subject but poor writing prevails
While I thoroughly enjoyed the information related in this book, I found the way in which the author presented it frequently annoying. His use of, what I perceived as, irrelevant and distracting metaphors (etheral rings of Saturn compared to Tinkerbell, Peter Pan and Wendy's fairy friend) did little to elucidate the matter at hand. There were sections in the book that seemed curiously anomalous - why did he spend so much time debating the Gaia principle in an otherwise scientific-based analysis? I was also shocked at the degree of type-errors associated with a book published by Cambridge university press. While I would advocate the subject matter I would not reccomend this particular one, or this particular author.

Chaos in the making
The main point of this book is the chaotic way in which our solar system came into being. It cannot be described in a systematic scientific way, but is rather a hotchpotch of elements thrown together through a series of bewilderingly complex and random processes.

A bit like Mr Taylor's book in fact.

Perhaps in order to empathise with his content, Mr Taylor has adopted a style of writing and presentation that is every bit as chaotic and unstructured as our solar system.

Muddled, repetitive, incohesive and full of irritating references to what was said earlier or what is about to be said, the book reads like a series of draft lecture notes thrown together with all the abandon that distinguishes the creation of our solar system.

Above all, the poor quality of description makes the reading a frustrating experience:

"When a meteorite or comet hits the surface, debris is thrown out by the explosion and surrounds the crater like a blanket. Unlike craters on other planets, those on Venus often have a missing sector. This gap is caused when the rubble thrown-out (sic) by the explosion runs into turbulence in the atmosphere caused by the incoming meteorite or asteroid. The flung-out rock just gets tossed aside."

As did this book. ... Read more

Book Description

A total eclipse of the Sun is an awe-inspiring sight. By an extraordinary coincidence, the Moon - despite having a diameter 400 times less than that of the Sun - is exactly the right distance from the Earth to just cover the Sun in our sky: a total solar eclipse. At any given point of the Earth, this happens only once every 370 years. A total solar eclipse will take place in August 1999, it will be visible from much of Europe (including the West of England), and brings with it renewed interest in total eclipses, and not only of the Sun. Total Eclipses is more than a detailed scientific study of Solar and Lunar (at a level appropriate for undergraduates), it is also a fascinating survey of the myths and legends associated with eclipses and their observation, throughout history. ... Read more

Book Description

Up to the present, no one book has appeared covering the hole of this vast ground, describing both the field of evolution and the streams of life which evolve in it as the ages roll by. The present volume is an attempt to fill this need. Partial Contents: Globes; Schemes of evolution; Solar system; Solar Logos; Life streams; Degrees of attainment; Races and sub-races; Involution and evolution; Manus; Moon chain; The Earth and all its chains; Root races; Lemuria; Civilization of Atlantis; City of the bridge; Aryan sub-race; Life on Mars and Mercury. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Excellent addition to The Secret Doctrine
A great book for all of you who are into New Age and history/future of mankind.
When I started to read this book, I didn't even know about the Secret Doctrine. Of course, after finishing it, I read the H.P.B classic... The Solar System is an excellent complementary reading, when it comes to the mavantara/pralaya cycles, rounds, races, etc... There's some pictures showing the cycles that make easy to understand how our solar system works.
After all, is a must read. ... Read more

Book Description

This book takes an excursion through solar science, science history, and geoclimate with a husband and wife team who revealed some of our sun's most stubborn secrets.

E Walter and Annie S D Maunder's work helped in understanding our sun's chemical, electromagnetic and plasma properties. They knew the sun's sunspot migration patterns and its variable, climate-affecting, inactive and active states in short and long time frames. An inactive solar period starting in the mid-seventeenth century lasted approximately seventy years, one that E Walter Maunder worked hard to make us understand: the Maunder Minimum of c 1620–1720 (which was posthumously named for him).

With ongoing concern over global warming, and the continuing failure to identify root causes driving earth's climatic changes, the Maunders' story outlines how our cyclical sun can alter climate. The book goes on to view the sun-earth connection in terms of geomagnetic variation and climatic change; contemporary views on the sun's operating mechanisms are explored, and the effects these have on the earth over long and short time scales are pondered.

If not a call to widen earth's climate research to include the sun, this book strives to illustrate how solar causes and effects can influence earth's climate in ways we must understand in order to enhance solar system research and our well-being. ... Read more

Book Description

Nemesis is the name given by scientists to a (theoretical) small companion star to our sun. Every 26 million years, Nemesis's orbit brings it close enough to the sun to bombard our solar system with billions of comets. While most of the comets will float harmlessly beyond the outer planets, some passing through the sun's Oort Cloud will be deflected by its gravitational force toward Earth. Such a "large-body impact," the Nemesis theory holds, was responsible for the mass extinction that led to the demise of the dinosaurs. The next impact, millions of years from now, might very well extinguish humanity. In this lively, fascinating, and often disturbing book, updated and revised with the latest scientific evidence on terrestrial impacts, David M. Raup re-explores the controversies of the Nemesis theory from the trenches of the scientific community, and investigates the issues--both scientific and philosophical--of mass extinction. ... Read more

Reviews (5)

A companion star causing comets here on earth?

According to the hypothesis a small companion star to the earth, like a binary, but smaller and more distant (perhaps two light years distant) passes through the Oort belt approximately every 26 thousand years (don't hold your breath), causing some comets to veer from their paths and impact the earth and its neighbors, causing a large scale extinction of species, among whom in the past were the dinosaurs, and giving others, like us and our cousins, a better chance for survival.

The author points out that the star, long known as "Nemesis," or the "Dark star", has never been seen--nor, for that matter has the so-called Oort belt. They are both hypothetical, with no evidence of their true existence.

The whole idea of why species go extinct, with a life span of from one to ten million years on average, depending on the species involved is a mystery to scientists--much like the mystery of why individuals within a species must necessarily die, perhaps.

Although the author defends, as well as finding fault with, scientific method, it sounds much like turf wars between gangs or political parties. And some of their favorite ideas sound, well, less than reasonable shall we say. They seem more impressed with each other's credentials and reputations than the reasonableness of their pet projects. Is a star--even a small one--so hard to see with the optics, radio telescopes, etc., that are available today?

Yet, this hypothesis is no more far-fetched than many others, and may well turn out to be true, yet. Mr. David M. Raup is most persuasive in his presentation.

There are some good points made herein. For instance the author's point that almost all species that ever existed on the earth have gone extinct--both plant and animal life forms. He also mentions that often they simply change form, from environmental necessity, or gradually spawn new life forms. It would seem inevitable, either gradually or catastrophically for any given species to cease to exist and another to arise. If they died out and were not replaced, soon all life would become extinct, or if they did not necessarily die, then life forms would certainly overwhelm the earth at some point. So, a balance is achieved, which, for whatever reason seems to be the order of things.

And the ecologists who continually fret about how the human race is responsible for all of the earth's problems, and want to "save" all its species except their own--(an impossible task, even if they successfully destroyed all of the "evil" human beings, cockroaches would probably survive) would find that all species would continue to die, and others be reborn. An exercise in futility, gone awry.

I suspect that, while the sciences are playing their guessing games and one-upsmanship, the earth will continue to revolve around its poles with a jolly little wobble, continue its orbit around the sun, at least until it implodes, or explodes, and the inhabitants, individually and collectively, will continue to be born, and die, and think that they are so important that they are causing it all. And when Mount Pinatubo or St. Helens erupt they will put out hundreds of time more particulate matter in 24 hours than all of the "pollution" their own insignificant species, Homo Sapiens, will produce in 100 years.(...)

The Birthing Pangs of an Idea
David M. Raup has written an interesting account of the scientic process in The Nemesis Affair (A Story of the Death of Dinosaurs and the Ways of Science). This is a perfect book for the non-specialist as it gives a glimpse into the larger world science inhabits beyond the minutiae of scientific details. This book shows the ways in which the scientific community, the popular press, and the general public all compete and struggle in creating and accepting (or dismissing) new ideas. The belief that dinosaurs died out partially due to a meteor or comet colliding with earth is one such idea and its genesis from a small spark of inspiration into common belief is told in a clear and entertaing fashion. This is a book that is interesting for the scientific idea it is trying to postulate as well as for the way it illuminates the larger world science is trying to inform and shape.

An exciting example of how science works
In the June, 1980 edition of Science an article written by four UC Berkeley scientists, led by Walter Alvarez, was published. This article claimed an extraterrestrial cause for the extinction of the dinosaurs and other species 65 million years ago. Reaction from paleontologists and others was immediate and largely negative. They saw it as a splashy, media-darling type of catastrophic explanation anathema to most working scientists. Author David Raup and his colleague Jack Sepkoski were however among those paleontologists (Stephen Jay Gould was another) who liked the idea. Since there are a number of other mass extinctions in the fossil record, they wondered if these events might be connected and how. They began a statistical analysis of the record, and in February, 1984 published a paper in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences demonstrating a 26-million-year periodicity. This led to the question, why would these extinctions be regular and what caused them? The answer came from astrophysicists who postulated (among other theories) a "Death Star" companion to the sun, dubbed Nemesis. This star would periodically come close to the sun, disturbing the Oort Cloud of comets, sending some of them to rain down on Earth, thus killing substantial amounts of life on earth.

It's a great theory and I love it. Unfortunately no one has ever seen this Nemesis star, which is not due to return for another 13 million years or so. In fact no one has seen the Oort Cloud either, although I understand most astrophysicists believe it is there. And of course paleontologists do not like catastrophic explanations for mass extinctions. In fact they hate them for both theoretical and personal reasons.

Thus we have the ingredients for an engaging and very human story about how science works and how it doesn't work. In this extremely readable book Raup reveals how scientific ideas develop, how they are rejected and accepted, and how some theories can neither be confirmed nor rejected, and how the scientific community treats such ideas, and how the media is involved. The blurb on the book cover has a quote from James Trefil comparing it as a memoir to The Double Helix, James Watson's personal story of how he and Francis Crick got credit for discovering the structure of the DNA molecule. I agree that this book is as readable as that very involving story, but Raup's book is more on the order of readable journalism, while Watson's book was more like a novel.

What is intriguing in both books is the sheer humanity displayed in both a positive and a negative sense. Here we see a kind of knee jerk, turf-protecting rejection of new ideas by the established cadre of scientists, especially in paleontology. In one sense this is understandable. If you work all your life to help build a certain view of the way things are in your chosen field, and along comes an idea that completely overturns your life's work, you are not going to be happy. You will rail against it and try to show that it is false. We see this in all fields of science since all fields are staffed by humans. I notice in psychology, for example, that the old cognitive and psychoanalytical people find it very difficult to accept the findings of evolutionary psychology, some of which make Freud, for example, look very much mistaken. In this sense scientists are like the Victorians who fought against the ideas of Darwin that threatened to overturn their view of the world (and did!).

Part of what makes this book effective is the openness with which Raup tells the story. He is candid to the point of showing and admitting his own faults and prejudices. He shows how success in science is gauged, not by dollars or fame, or even necessarily by what's discovered, but by prestige among colleagues. He writes on page 211 that "one's success as a scientist can be measured more by the number of people he or she puts to work on new problems than by the correctness of specific research results."

This book is a revision of the 1986 edition with a new introduction and a new final chapter entitled "Update 1999." The Nemesis Affair is not over with. Raup lets us know that the crater has been found for the K-T extinction of the dinosaurs, and that most scientists now accept the Alvarez scenario for Cretaceous extinctions. However neither a dark star nor a tenth planet has been found, and so the acceptance of the periodicity of mass extinctions is on hold.

To show how ideas in science can lead to totally unexpected advances elsewhere, note that the work done in understanding how the dinosaurs died after the impact of the K-T meteor led to a realization of the possibility of "nuclear winter," which in turn was a factor in ending the cold war. It is somewhat amazing to realize that the work of Alvarez and his colleagues may have helped to prevent a nuclear holocaust. Some people think that money spent on SETI or on space exploration is wasted. I think that knowledge gained is always valuable, and sometimes, spectacularly so.

Good Account of Science Interaction
The book, though now outdated, presents a wonderful insight into science and how it works. Especially well written, the author clearly explains the interlocking processes and activities that makes science what it is. He also reveals some of the deep biases that often exist among scientists committed to a paradigm. A recommended read for anyone interested in dinosaurs and their demise.

Historically Informative
This book, written in 1985, is now chiefly of value to thosewho would are interested in the development of the idea that theCretaceous Mass Extinction was caused by meteoric impact. Raup, since retired from the University of Chicago, and his associate Sepkoski also found evidence for a 26 million year periodicity of other mass extinctions, which led astronomers to propose the existence of a "death star" named Nemesis. Nemesis was postulated to exist in a highly eccentric orbit around the sun, whose periodic visits would disturb the Oort cloud of comets, sending some crashing into earth. This book describes the controversy surrounding these new, revolutionary concepts. Indeed one of Raup's goals in writing the book was to document the nature of scientific change. The book is, after all 12 years old. How well do the various theories stand up in 1997? Interestingly the Cretaceous impact has been widely accepted but the extent of its environmental impact remains a matter of debate. Some believe it accounts for the demise of the dinosaurs, others are still committed to a volcanic explanation. Extinction periodicity remains in limbo; and as for Nemesis -- all efforts to find it have failed and interest has declined remarkably. ... Read more

Book Description

This revolutionary new book is written for practical amateur astronomers who not only want to observe, but want to know the details of exactly what they are looking at. The Moon is the most commonly observed of all astronomical objects. This is the first book to deal equally with the Moon itself - its formation, geology, and history - as well as the practical aspects of observation. The concept of the book - and of the series - is to present an up-to-date detailed description of the Moon, including its origins, history, and geology (part one); and then (part two) to consider how best to observe and record it successfully using commercially-available equipment. The Moon and How to Observe it is a mine of information for all levels of amateur observers, from the beginner to the experienced ... Read more

Reviews (5)

How We Got to Our Current Understanding of the Moon
I must confess that I came to this book not out of a previously existing interest in geology or solar system science, but rather from a fascination with the Apollo program with its engineering and medical challenges. However, this led to wondering what ultimately was discovered on the moon. I then read this fine book and found it very interesting. At the time it was published, there was almost no material available in popular form on the scientific findings of Apollo and the other unmanned spaceflights to the moon so this was a pioneering work. In recent years, other books have appeared that also deal with the lunar discoveries, most notably Paul Spudis' "The Once and Future Moon" and David M Harland's "Exploring the Moon". I would have appreciated this book more if I had first read one or both of these other books because Wilhelms assumes the reader has some background in geology which was not the case with me. Once the reader gets up to speed on the basic geology which is provided in those other books, one can appreciate more the historical perspective that the author gives on how our current understanding of the Moon's past and present have developed over the last couple hundred years. In addition to the science, Wilhelms gives colorful descriptions of the major figures in lunar science including Nobel Prize Winner Harold Urey, Ralph Baldwin, Gene Shoemaker, Hal Masursky, "Mr Moondust" Thomas Gold, as well as the various astronauts who were recruited (sometimes unwillingly) into the lunar science fraternity. I believe that in order to understand any branch of science, it is important to see the evolution of ideas leading to our current knowledge and this book is an excellent source of information on the development of lunar science for the scientifically educated layman.

Geologist's View of the Apollo Missions to the Moon
Don Wilhelms was a member of the Apollo Scientific Team and the US Geological Survey. In this book he describes his role, along with his geologist colleagues, during the Apollo explorations of the Moon. In addition, he presents a brief history of the theories associated with the origin of the moon and its craters, the people and problems involved in the section of the Apollo landing sites, a discussion of the geological results obtained from each of the Apollo landing sites, and finally a summary of the findings from the Apollo missions and the development of a theory to explain the formation of the moon.

The book opens with several chapters that describe the early telescopic observations of the moon and the competing theories explaining the moon origins. Specifically, there was the cold formation/capture theory and the hot formation/formed with Earth theory. After this thorough explanation of the development of these theories, the author covers the early robotic exploration of the moon conducted by the Ranger, Surveyor and Lunar Orbiter probes. From these missions, it was determined that the majority of the Moon's craters were probably created by meteoroid impact. Within these sections, the author also describes the landing site selection process.

Except for the concluding section and appendices, the remainder of the book (approximately 50%) covers in detail, the geological exploration conducted by the astronauts at each landing site and the results obtained. Since the early flights to the moon, Apollos 11, 12 and 14, were shorts stay, the book emphasizes the extensive geological exploration conducted by the Apollos 15, 16 and 17 missions. These missions included an electrically powered car, which greatly extended the areas of the moon that the astronauts could explore. These final missions were also supported in real time by a scientific support room staffed with many highly skilled geologists that helped to direct the astronauts during sample collection.

I found this book to be highly enjoyable and its covers an aspect of the Apollo program that is usually not covered in great detail. That is, the people behind the scenes who helped make this project the great success that it was. On the flip side, some readers may find the book a bit too technical, especially with all the geological terms and the small amount of the supporting diagrams and figures.

3 and 1/2 stars...Major lunar geology discussion...
Whew!...You almost need to take a geology class before tackling this. Wilhems goes into great detail describing the moon from a geologists standpoint, so be prepared for that, but, the things that I took from this is that he also describes the early history of the un-manned program of lunar exploration (Ranger and Surveyor programs) in excellent detail as well as the geology history of the manned program, training and all. Obviously, the later (Apollo 15 through 17) missions are covered in more detail than the early ones, but there is something here for everyone interested in the Apollo program...just be prepared to be inundated with geology-speak.

What About Tektites?
This is a good book and you'll find no better account about the geology of the Moon. My only bone to pick with the author is as follows: on the subject of tektites--those odd-shaped, natural glass stones which show evidence of having entered the Earth's atmosphere at angles which have their starting points on the Moon's surface--Wilhelms displays his conservative bias in favor of the safe diagnosis which chants that tektites are fancy forms of impactites and crater glass. The author fails to report that micro-tektites were indeed discovered on the Moon in several Apollo samples as well as in a sample from the Russian Luna 16 sample return mission! And for at least one Apollo sample, the tektitic material is IDENTICAL to Earth's tektites; had this rock been found in Antarctica, say, according to retired NASA scientist J.A. O'Keefe, it would have been identified as a tektite! The ghostly mantra of old Harold Urey--that tektites are terrestrial--keeps rearing its head on this topic. When you begin to look at impact structures and tektites, you begin to realize that tektites are not there because of the craters, but vice versa. So, the debate about tektites and their origins is far from settled as Wilhelms, et al, would lead us to believe.!

Excellent summary of the science of Apollo by an insider
With the recently aired HBO series "From the Earth to the Moon", interest in the Apollo program has intensified. The series was inspired and based, in part on Andy Chaikin's excellent "A Man on the Moon". Don Wilhelms, a retired USGS planetary geologist, has wri