Looking at the universe
The naked eye 12
Tracking the universe 14
Telescopes 16
Capturing light 18
Space telescopes 20
Space probes 22
Beyond the visible 24
Exotic observatories 26
The Sun and inner planets
The solar system 30
The Earth-centered universe 32
Birth of the solar system 34
Energy of the Sun 36
Sun spots 38
Storms on the Sun 40
The solar wind 42
Studying the Sun 44
The Sun-centered universe 46
Eclipses of the Sun 48
Understanding eclipses 50
Mercury 52
Mercury's surface 54
Venus 56
Transits of Venus 58
Venusian atmosphere 60
The surface of Venus 62
Venus and the Maya 64
Earth 66
Earthrise 68
The habitable zone 70
Tectonic planet 72
The Sun in the sky 74
Earth's atmosphere 76
Airglow 78
Satellites 80
The International Space Station 82
Space walks 84
The Moon 86
Phases of the Moon 88
Impact craters 90
The far side of the Moon 92
Mapping the Moon 94
Landing on the Moon 96
Studying the Moon 98
The Space Age 100
Back to the Moon 102
Mars 104
Mars mythology 106
Volcanoes on Mars 108
Valles Marineris 110
Water on Mars 112
Polar caps 114
Dunes on Mars 116
Martian atmosphere 118
Missions to Mars 120
Landing on Mars 122
Mars rovers 124
Life on Mars 126
Moons of Mars 128
Asteroids 130
Asteroid missions 132
Ceres 134
Gas giants and outer worlds
The planets 138
Jupiter 140
The Great Red Spot 142
Jovian atmosphere 144
Polar storms and aurorae 146
Io 148
Europa 150
Ganymede 152
Callista 154
Galileo and Jupiter 156
The Jupiter system 158
Astrology 160
Saturn 162
Saturn's atmosphere 164
Saturn's rings 166
Saturn's ring system 168
Titan 170
Enceladus 172
Saturn's moons 174
Uranus 176
Neptune 178
Moons of the ice giants 180
The Kuiper Belt 182
Pluto and Charon 184
Comets 186
From omens to orbits 188
Missions to comets 190
Meteors 192
Micrometeorites 194
Shooting stars and fireballs 196
Earth impacts 198
Meteorites 200
Into interstellar space 202
The Milky Way
What is a star? 206
Starlight 208
Types of stars 210
Star catalogs 212
Massive stars 214
Variable stars 216
Multiple stars 218
The lives of stars 220
Star-forming nebulae 222
The Carina Nebula 224
Starbirth 226
Emerging solar systems 228
Stellar shock waves 230
The fate of sunlike stars 232
Planetary nebulae 234
Supernovae 236
Supernova remnants 238
New stars in the sky 240
The interstellar medium 242
Diffuse nebulae 244
Neutron stars 246
Black holes 248
Open clusters 250
The Seven Sisters 252
Globular clusters 254
Constellations 256
Star charts 258
Exoplanets 260
Brown dwarfs 262
The Milky Way 264
The Milky Way in our sky 266
The galactic center 268
Optical telescopes 270
Making starlight 272
Beyond the Milky Way
Clouds beyond our galaxy 276
Satellite galaxies 278
Spiral galaxies 280
The local group 282
Types of galaxies 284
The Whirlpool Galaxy 286
Galactic collision 288
The Antennae 290
Active galaxies 292
Galaxy clusters 294
Stefan's Quintet 296
Dark matter 298
The largest structures 300
The farthest limits
The Big Bang 304
Creation myths 306
The first light 308
The expanding universe 310
The James Webb Space Telescope 312
The first stars and galaxies 314
The energy of space 316
The search for life 318
The constellations 320
Glossary 400
Index 406
Acknowledgments 414