Book of Dublin sky

GAAman

Hi all, hope it is ok that I post this here. I was wondering if anyone had suggestions on a book to get for my mam. She mentioned recently she would like to be able to look up and know the stars by name.

Would anyone know of a good book with pictures and information on them that would do the job? Just think it would be a good Christmas present

Thanks

docmol

For starters the "little gem book of the stars", cheap and fits in the pocket. If she has a smart phone she can download an app that makes it very easy to identify stars and planets.

ps200306

You should also consider a Planisphere, e.g.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Philips-Planisphere-Latitude-51-5-North/dp/1849071888

As the previous poster mentioned, you can get an app on your phone that does the same job, but being able to sit down with a printed sky map is a help, especially for a beginner. Also, you can rotate the Planisphere to show the sky for any particular time of year. It's been the tool of choice for generations of amateurs, and is still one of the simplest and most basic tools which you can be using after just a few minutes learning.

GAAman

Thanks for the suggestions folks

jfSDAS

hi GAAman,

One of the best books to pick up is something like the Philips Stargazing 2013. That will highlight all the celestial events happening over the year ahead and has a monthly sky chart to pick out the seasonal stars. It is only 10 euro and can be picked up online or in a local bookstore. The only omission is the two bright comets due in 2013 but a web site like earthsky.org or www.spaceweather.com will update you on that closer to the time.

Another possibility is a subscription to an astronomy magazine. The Sky at Night publication is quite expensive however to post to Ireland but there's a few other options with Astronomy Now or Astronomy & Space.

Happy Christmas everyone!

John

Rhys Essien

OP,you can download Stellarium for free.It very good.You just type in your location.

http://www.stellarium.org/