Synopses & Reviews
Includes bibliographical references (p. 244) and index.
Review
"The solar system is spectacular, especially when viewed close-up in this oversized book. The text describes, in general and understandable language expertly translated from the French by Storm Dunlop, our neighborhood in the universe." Science Books &Films
Synopsis
This lavishly illustrated book invites the reader on a journey through the solar system, describing the Sun and its planets, the large satellites, asteroids and comets. With photographs and information from recent space missions, the reader will discover the lunar plains scarred by asteroid impacts, the continuously erupting volcanoes of Io and the giant geysers of Triton; he will cross the rings of Saturn, and plunge into the clouds of Venus and Titan, to emerge with a greater appreciation of the hospitable planet we call home.
About the Author
Photo-journalist and science writer, Brunier is the author of various books covering astronomy and cosmology, and for many years was the chief editor of the French journal Ciel et Espace.
Table of Contents
Introduction; 1. A star lost in infinite space; 2. The Sun, our Star; 3. Mercury: baked by the heat of the Sun; 4. Venus: a vision of hell; 5. The Moon: setting foot on another world; 6. Mars: a trip to the desert planet; 7. Phobos and Deimos: pebbles in the sky; 8. Gaspra: our first asteroid; 9. Jupiter: planet of storms; 10. Shoemaker-Levy: timetable to collision; 11. Io: the volcano planet; 12. Europa: the hidden ocean; 13. Saturn: the Lord of the Rings; 14. Titan: an Earth in hibernation; 15. Enceladus and the worlds of ice; 16. Uranus: a recumbent giant; 17. Halley: the great traveller; 18. Neptune: the great blue sea; 19. Triton: volcanoes of ice; 20. Pluto and Charon: planets in limbo; Appendices.