Visual Lunar and Planetary Astronomy

With the advent of CCDs and webcams, the focus of amateur astronomy has to some extent shifted from science to art. The object of many amateur astronomers is now to produce "stunning images" that, although beautiful, are not intended to have scientific merit. Paul Abel has been addressing this issue by promoting visual astronomy wherever possible - at talks to astronomical societies, in articles for popular science magazines, and on BBC TV's The Sky at Night. Visual Lunar and Planetary Astronomy is a comprehensive modern treatment of visual lunar and planetary astronomy, showing that even in the age of space telescopes and interplanetary probes it is still possible to contribute scientifically with no more than a moderately-priced commercially made astronomical telescope. It is believed that imaging and photography is somehow more objective and more accurate than the eye, and this has led to a peculiar "crisis of faith" in the human visual system and its amazing processing power. But by analyzing observations from the past, we can see how accurate visual astronomy really is! Measuring the rotational period of Mars and making accurate lunar charts for American astronauts were all done by eye.

This book details the methods and practices of visual amateur astronomy and explains how to produce an accurate scientific record of visual observations, using no more than a moderate size commercially made astronomical telescope.

A lifelong amateur astronomer based in Leicester in the UK, Paul Abel earned his degree in Mathematics at the University of Leicester, specializing in general relativity and black holes during his final year. Paul is currently completing a Ph.D. in Theoretical Physics. He is a regular guest on The Sky at Night TV show, where he tries to promote scientific visual observation at every opportunity. Paul is an Associate Member of the Institute of Physics (AMInstP), a Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society (FRAS), and Assistant Director of Saturn section of the British Astronomical Association. He has published several articles and contributed to various astronomy books, including Patrick Moore's Yearbook of Astronomy, 2010, published by Macmillan.

Acknowledgements.- Foreword by Sir Patrick Moore.- Chapter 1: Introduction.- Chapter 2: Instruments and Techniques.- Chapter 3: Mercury.- Chapter 4: Venus.- Chapter 5: Mars.- Chapter 6: Jupiter.- Chapter 7: Saturn.- Chapter 8: Uranus.- Index.