COSMOS

A dramatic photographic tour of the universe.

The observable universe contains some hundred billion galaxies -- each one made up of as many stars. Of the vast billions of stars, only a scant 5,000 are actually visible from Earth with the naked eye.

Over the last twenty years, space probes and space-based telescopes have released us from the confines of Earth and catapulted us into the open reaches of space to capture worlds beyond our own.

Cosmos showcases magnificent celestial objects of unparalleled beauty, gathering the most dramatic images of the night sky - from close planets and our sun to the most remote galaxies. It features the latest images from space from sources including Hubble, NASA and the European Space Agency.

The light of some stars and galaxies take several billion years to reach to us. In fact some of the blazing stars featured in Cosmos are already dead. This remarkable voyage shows frozen and fiery worlds of stars and galaxies as they are created and as they are dying.

Cosmos is organized into the following chapters:

• Solar System
• Scattered Nebulae and Stellar Births
• Star Clusters
• Planetary Nebulas
• Decline and Death of Giant Star
• Galaxies as Far as the Eye Can See.

Cosmos, an inspiring, rare and unobstructed view into the far reaches of space, is for anyone who has ever gazed into the night sky and wondered what was actually out there.

Sylvia Arditi is a science journalist.

Marc Lachieze-Rey is an astrophysicist and professor of astronomy.