Under Alien Skies: A Sightseer's Guide to the Universe

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Product Details
Price
$30.00  $27.90
Publisher
W. W. Norton & Company
Publish Date
Pages
336
Dimensions
6.2 X 9.1 X 1.5 inches | 1.2 pounds
Language
English
Type
Hardcover
EAN/UPC
9780393867305

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About the Author
Philip Plait, PhD, is an astronomer, sci-fi dork, TV documentary talking head, and all-around science enthusiast. The author of Bad Astronomy and Death from the Skies!, he writes the Bad Astronomy newsletter and lives in Charlottesville, Virginia.
Reviews
As charming and personal as it is detailed and accurate, Under Alien Skies is a wonderful guide to what we know about the universe and how we know it.--Zach Weinersmith, creator of Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal and New York Times best-selling co-author of Soonish
A rollicking, wondrous, and awe-inspiring introduction to the universe. Philip Plait's writing transports us to other worlds and in the process helps us to appreciate our own world.--John Green, author of The Fault in Our Stars and The Anthropocene Reviewed
Reading Under Alien Skies is the next-best thing to traveling through space and time. Philip Plait is a funny, warm, and welcoming guide to the most marvelous places in the universe.... You'll experience what it would be like to actually be there, while learning some of the most mind-expanding science humans have ever figured out. When you look up at the night sky, you'll think of this book and smile.--Laura Helmuth, editor-in-chief of Scientific American
Plait takes readers on an awe-inspiring tour of the cosmos in this dazzling outing...This will change how readers think about space.-- "Publishers Weekly (starred review)"
Philip Plait takes us to nearby worlds and star systems far, far away, where we do plenty of exploration, a bit of astronomical science, and a lot of marveling. But it's the descriptions of your spaceships and suits that will keep you strapped in and reading on. His flights of science fiction fantasy are scientific and absolutely spectacular. Enjoy the rides.--Bill Nye, CEO, The Planetary Society
[Plait's] realistic depictions, grounded in human senses, awaken a feeling of wanderlust and make the esoteric feel real...It's a remarkable journey.--John Keogh "Booklist"
In his new book, Under Alien Skies . . . Plait brings his usual curiosity and humor to exploring 10 fascinating spots in our solar system and beyond. Plait delves into the science--and science fiction--of these space destinations, going beyond what telescopes and space photography can tell us about these strange worlds, and what it would actually be like to visit them in person.--Ramin Skibba "WIRED"
Plait could dance circles around what most of us know about space . . . [yet] finds ways to talk about how an everyday person would experience space. . . . [He] doesn't just look up at the sky and dream but really envisions what it would be like to spend a summer among the stars.--Kelly Blewett "BookPage"