Deep Sky Objects: The Best and Brightest from Four Decades of Comet Chasing

Levy, of the famous comet-hunting team Shoemaker-Levy, compiles a comprehensive catalog of objects which can be observed in all light conditions and usually with low-power equipment. Targeting novice astronomers, Levy provides a brief astronomy primer-""permanent"" objects, terms and definitions-before jumping into the lengthy list of deep sky sites (stars, nebulae and the like located outside our solar system). The following 10 chapters present deep sky objects in order of increasing distance from Earth, beginning with nearby stars and ending with galaxies and distant quasars. Levy provides the astronomical coordinates, magnitude and recommendations for best viewing, and the descriptions are interspersed with stories of his observations, mishaps, frustrations and beginner's struggles. His excitement over these stars is palpable and infectious, though his narrative can get clunky with techtalk. (""We inserted a 7 mm eyepiece...This combination yielded a comfortably high magnification of 726 power to try to split the lensed object, which has a separation of 6.3 arcseconds."") Dedicated stargazers will appreciate the book's reference section, which includes the full Levy deep sky list, an inventory of objects commonly mistaken for comets, 29 star maps, a bibliography and a short glossary. A thorough resource, the book will be a much-thumbed reference for amateur skywatchers. Photos.