Published on September 6th, 2022 | by Chris O'Connor
The Night Sky Month By Month Book Review
Summary: A guide to what to look for in the night sky and where to find it.
4.5
Looking Up
If you’ve ever taken a look at the night sky (and who hasn’t), it’s easy to get overwhelmed by the vastness of it all. You might be able to make out the odd constellation here or there… but chances are you know there’s far more to observe, but you’re not sure how or where to find it.
The Night Sky Month By Month is the guide to the sky above, showing you what to find at what time of year and where to find it. Whether you are observing with your naked eyes or using binoculars or telescopes, the guide will help you make the most of your observing.
As someone with a modest interest in star gazing (my telescope of choice is a 10 inch Dobsonian telescope that I have slightly modified to allow for some astrophotography), narrowing down the massive expanse above my head to something more manageable to observe can often be a challenge… honing in on an area of specific interest can also be a challenge. The Night Sky Month By Month does basically what the title says… it guides the readers through the sky above them (be they northern or southern hemisphere dwellers… both are catered for), pointing out the major areas/items of interest.
The books is presented chronologically so you can make your way through each calendar month noting what to keep an eye out for. After reading about what to spot, you can use the star chart to get your self oriented correctly to make finding your target much easier.
As an extra bit of value, the back of the book features an almanac that covers the major astronomical events set to occur over the next ten years so you can mark your calendar ahead of time and make sure you are ready to observe the next solar eclipse or closest orbit of Jupiter.
The Night Sky Month By Month makes for a great introduction to observing the night sky and is a useful reference even for more established star gazers because who couldn’t do with a few more visual aids for our amazing portion of the cosmos.
Grab a copy for yourself or a loved one, friend who is interested in getting more out of their upward night gazing.