Starfinder: The Complete Beginner's Guide to Exploring the Night Sky

Planisphere and Starfinder is your personal guide to exploring the night sky. It takes the mystery out of astronomy and introduces basic stargazing techniques, helping you to find and recognize objects easily.

Starting close to home in the Solar System, it shows you how to observe the Moon, planets, comets, and asteroids, as well as how to make the most of events like eclipses and meteor showers. Then, you’ll head for the stars with a guide to the constellations.

In this book, you will find:

• Facts, charts, timelines, and graphs to help explain core concepts.
• Month-by-month guides outlining the best times and places to see planets.
• A planisphere you can remove from the book and take anywhere to see stars on the go.

Each entry is illustrated with a clear star chart, shows you where you can see the constellation in the world, and even explains its star pattern's symbolic meaning. Have you ever heard of Orion’s belt? Your guide will ensure you’re armed with a list of things to look out for and how best to see them.

Carole Stott has 20 years of experience as an astronomer, and has served as the curator of astronomy and the head of the observatory for the Royal Observatory in England. She is the author of Eyewitness: Space Exploration, Eye Wonder: Space, I Wonder Why Stars Twinkle, and Celestial Charts: Antique Maps of the Heavens.Giles Sparrow studied astronomy at University College London and science communication at Imperial College, London, and is a bestselling science and astronomy author. His books include Cosmos, Spaceflight, The Universe in 100 Key Discoveries, and Physics in Minutes, as well as contributions to DK books, such as Universe and Space.