Abstract

The Encyclopedia of the Solar System provides a series of comprehensive and authoritative articles written by more than 50 eminent planetary and space scientists. Each chapter is self-contained yet linked by cross-references to other related chapters. This beautifully designed book is a must for the library of professional astronomers and amateur star-gazers alike, in fact for anyone who wishes to understand the nature of our solar system.
Key Features
* Cross-referenced throughout for easy comprehension
* Superbly illustrated with over 700 photos, drawings, and diagrams, including 36 color plates
* Provides 40 thematically organized chapters by more than 50 eminent contributors
* Convenient glossaries of technical terms introduce each chapter
* Academic Press maintains a web site for the Encyclopedia at www.academicpress.com/solar; Author-recommended web resources for additional information, images, and research developments related to each chapter of this volume, are available here
"This reference guide to four decades of exploration and discovery [...] is a valuable resource for academic and large public libraries."
--LIBRARY JOURNAL, April 15, 2000
"The 56 contributors to this one-volume encyclopedia-all specialists in solar system science-describe the system from the galaxy inward to the sun and then outward through the planets....The audience the editors have aimed at includes teachers, students, advanced amateurs, astronomers who do not specialize in the solar system, and professionals in other scientific and technical fields. Such a person could read the volume straight through or plunge at once into any of the topics."
--John Rennie, Editor-in-Chief, SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN, March 1999
"....The Encyclopedia of the Solar System is a worthy choice for academic libraries."
--AGAINST THE GRAIN
"Four decades of the most exciting explorations in human history in one book! Up-to-the-minute details by the best writers to explore the solar system are wonderfully organized for both looking up quick facts and for in-depth study. This one pulls it all together. Any citizen of the solar system from age 8 to 80 should own this encyclopedia."
--Dr. Jay Apt, Director, Carnegie Museum of Natural History, four-time Space Shuttle Astronaut
"Weissman, McFadden, and Johnson have done a terrific job in assembling a roster of world-class experts to write about the key topics in planetary science. This should be a valuable guide both in the classroom and on the reference shelf."
--Dr. William K. Hartmann, Planetary Science Institute, Tucson; Recipient of the American Astronomical Society's Carl Sagan Medal
"I cannot imagine a trio of scientists better qualified to produce a volume about the solar system than Weissman, McFadden, and Johnson. This is more than a book—it is a fantastic voyage to neighbor worlds that combines the accuracy of science with the beauty and wonder that is our solar system."
--Dr. David H. Levy, Astronomer
"During the last forty years, the nature of the solar system has been gradually revealed as more and more capable spacecraft have ventured further from Earth's shores, and as theoreticians have developed increasingly sophisticated models to understand what has been found. At last we have a compact yet complete summary of these incredible discoveries, prepared by many of the scientists who did the original work."
--Dr. Joseph A. Burns, Church Professor of Engineering and Professor of Astronomy, Cornell University
"A distinguished group of editors and authors have produced a compendium of our current knowledge about the Solar System and how we obtained it. This volume will reside on my desk as a vital resource to help me answer questions from scientists in other fields, public officials, and the general public."
--Dr. Robert W. Milkey, Executive Officer, American Astronomical Society
"I wish I had this on my desk for all the years I've needed an immediate reference for explaining something complicated about the Solar System to Congress or the Administration."
--Dr. Wesley T. Huntress, Jr., Associate Administrator for Space Science, NASA
"The Encyclopedia of the Solar System has been crafted by working scientific experts who are directly engaged in [current space explorations]. It is a must-have reference for anyone in the lay public, any would-be planetary explorer, who wants to join up and come along with us as we reach out into the void and touch the planets."
--Dr. Laurence A. Soderblom, United States Geological Survey