Sightseeing: A Space Panorama

YA These 84 captioned color space photos, selected from over 150,000 in NASA's archives and exhibited at the National Air and Space Museum, offer a beautiful, dramatic "you-are-there" view of space. They illustrate some highlights of the American space exploration, from the first Extra Vehicular Activity to space dockings to landing on the moon. In addition, these photos offer a unique sky-high view of earth, including the spectral beauty of islands, the surreal cloud-covered mountain tops and the rosy dustiness of a desert at sunset. A glorious book.
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc.

The editors felt that many space photos were technically interesting, but lacked emotional content. ``The scientific structure of the space program . . . prevented aesthetic evaluation,'' they note in the preface. On discovering some 150,0000 additional images taken by astronauts, Hitchcock and Riva viewed them all. This became the basis for a traveling exhibit, of which 84 images are reproduced here. With one exception, the photos were all taken by astronauts using handheld cameras, a criterion that eliminated many dramatic images taken by satellites and space probes. The result is a fascinating but selective view of space. R.E. Bilstein, Univ. of HoustonClear Lake
Copyright 1985 Reed Business Information, Inc.