Astrophysical Techniques, Fourth Edition

Published:
August 01, 2003 by Taylor & Francis - 493 Pages
Author(s):
C.R. Kitchin
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ISBN 9780750309462
Cat# IP153
 

Features

  • Offers a unified view of contemporary astrophysical investigation
  • Explains each method so that you can begin practical work
  • Examines the role of computers and the Internet in astronomy, in particular, digital sky surveys and virtual observatories
  • Includes illustrations and tables to help explain the principles and methods behind astronomical devices, such as interferometers and CCDs
  • Contains exercises with solutions to reinforce the ideas presented
  • Provides appendices containing tables of astrophysical data and an extensive bibliography to enable further study

    • Summary

    Providing a comprehensive and clear account of the instruments and techniques used in modern astronomy and astrophysics, the fourth edition of Astrophysical Techniques continues to offer information on all astronomical observations. Retaining the aims of earlier editions, the author unifies the concepts through lucid language and cohesive organization of the book.

    Revised and updated, this book encompasses an ever-diverging array of observational techniques using the detection-imaging-ancillary instruments pattern. The first several sections emphasize the detection of radiation or other information carrier as well as the instruments and techniques used to facilitate and optimize that detection. Later chapters discuss photometers and spectroscopes in detail while also examining the techniques of astrometry, polarimetry, and magnetometry.

    New to the Fourth Edition:

  • Many instruments and techniques included for the first time
  • A section that supplies Web sites and online resources
  • Elimination of archaic topics, providing the most up-to-date information available

    Astrophysical Techniques, Fourth Edition maintains comprehensive coverage of the instruments and techniques used in current astronomy and astrophysics, making it a superb reference for undergraduate and postgraduate students in astronomy, amateur astronomers, and professional astronomers.

    • Table of Contents

    STANDARD SYMBOLS
    PREFACE
    DETECTORS
    Optical and Infrared Detection
    Radio and Microwave Detection
    X-Ray and Gamma-Ray Detection
    Cosmic Ray Detectors
    Neutrino Detectors
    Gravitational Radiation
    IMAGING
    The Inverse Problem
    Photography
    Electronic Imaging
    Scanning
    Interferometry
    Speckle Interferometry
    Occultations
    Radar
    Electronic images
    PHOTOMETRY
    Photometry
    Photometers
    SPECTROSCOPY
    Spectroscopy
    Spectroscopes
    OTHER TECHNIQUES
    Astrometry
    Polarimetry
    Solar Studies
    Magnetometry
    Computers and the World Wide Web
    APPENDICES
    INDEX

    Editorial Reviews

    Praise for the Fourth Edition
    "Kitchin does an excellent job incorporating a multiwavelength approach to detector implementation. Optical and IR detectors are bundled together, and x-ray and gamma-ray detectors make up another section. Radio/microwave and neutrino/gravitational wave detection constitute the other two main sections. … Astrophysical Techniques does the best job covering instrumentation topics, and it is apparent that Kitchin has perfected his approach with this fourth edition."
    - William R. Alexander, The Astronomy Education Review

    "Now in its fourth edition, this book has included more techniques relevant to the modern astronomer as well as dropping older ones no longer in use. … The author keeps the rhythm going throughout the book, which makes it an easy and informative read."
    - Garry Pilkington, University of Liverpool

    "… Kitchin's book has always been an excellent source and fine student text. The rapid changes in techniques have led the author (now Emeritus Professor) to produce the Fourth Edition and include forefront technology such as superconducting tunnel junctions, while some older items have now been omitted. …"
    - Don Pollacco, The Observatory

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