Sky Gazing: A Guide to the Moon, Sun, Planets, Stars, Eclipses, and Constellations. This item is unavailable.Sky Gazing: A Guide to the Moon, Sun, Planets, Stars, Eclipses, and Constellations

This visual guide to observing the sun, moon, stars, and planets is perfect for kids aged 9-14.

This captivating book offers a tour of our solar system and deep space, explaining how objects like Earth’s moon were formed and introducing the “why” behind phenomena such as eclipses, northern lights, and meteor showers. Sky gazers will learn how to find and observe planets—no binoculars or telescopes required—and star charts will show them how to spot constellations through the seasons and in both hemispheres.

Activities include tracking the cycles of the sun and moon and observing the sky during daylight hours or on a cloudy night. Includes profiles of professional astronomers and sidebars on space technology and current issues, such as light pollution.

Meg Thacher is the author of Sky Gazing and Cool, Cosmic Tattoo Stars and Planets, a senior laboratory instructor in Smith College’s astronomy department and the academic director for Smith's Summer Science and Engineering Program for high schoolers. A regular contributor to national children’s science magazines, she teaches astronomy workshops for school groups and scout troops. She has a BA in physics from Carleton College and an MS in astrophysics from Iowa State. She lives in western Massachusetts.