Bad astronomy : misconceptions and misuses revealed, from astrology to the moon landing 'hoax' / Philip C. Plait.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Plait, Philip C.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Astronomy--Popular works.

Astronomy.

Astronomy--Miscellanea.

Genre:

Trivia and miscellanea.

Physical Description:

vii, 277 pages : illustrations, maps ; 23 cm

Place of Publication:

New York : Wiley, [2002]

Summary:

"Bad Astronomy is a fun read. Plait is wonderfully witty and educational as he debunks the myths, legends, and 'conspiracies that abound in our society. 'The Truth Is Out There'?and it's in this book. I loved it!" - Mike Mullane, Space Shuttle astronaut and author of Do Your Ears Pop in Space?

Contents:

Part I Bad Astronomy Begins at Home 9

1 The Yolk's on You: Egg Balancing and the Equinox 11

2 Flushed with Embarrassment: The Coriolis Effect and Your Bathroom 21

3 Idiom's Delight: Bad Astronomy in Everyday Language 28

Part II From the Earth to the Moon 37

4 Blue Skies Smiling at Me: Why the Sky Is Blue 39

5 A Dash of Seasons: Why Summer Turns to Fall 48

6 Phase the Nation: The Moon's Changing Face 57

7 The Gravity of the Situation: The Moon and the Tides 64

8 The Moon Hits Your Eye Like a Big Pizza Pie: The Big Moon Illusion 77

Part III Skies at Night Are Big and Bright 87

9 Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star: Why Stars Appear to Twinkle 89

10 Star Light, Star White: Stars of Many Colors 97

11 Well, Well: The Difficulty of Daylight Star Sighting 103

12 The Brightest Star: Polaris

Just Another Face in the Crowd 111

13 Shadows in the Sky: Eclipses and Sun-Watching 116

14 The Disaster that Wasn't: The Great Planetary Alignment of 2000 125

15 Meteors, Meteoroids, and Meteorites, Oh My!: The Impact of Meteors and Asteroids 133

16 When the Universe Throws You a Curve: Misunderstanding the Beginning of It All 142

Part IV Artificial Intelligence 153

17 Appalled at Apollo: Uncovering the Moon-Landing Hoax 155

18 Worlds in Derision: Velikovsky vs. Modern Science 174

19 In the Beginning: Creationism and Astronomy 187

20 Misidentified Flying Objects: UFOs and Illusions of the Mind and Eye 202

21 Mars Is in the Seventh House, But Venus Has Left the Building: Why Astrology Doesn't Work 212

Part V Beam Me Up 221

22 Hubble Trouble: Hubble Space Telescope Misconceptions 223

23 Star Hustlers: Star Naming for Dummies 236

24 Bad Astronomy Goes Hollywood: The Top-Ten Examples of Bad Astronomy in Major Motion Pictures 245.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

0471409766

OCLC:

48885221