Deep Space: Beyond the Solar System to the End of the Universe and the Beginning of Time

Schilling (Flash! The Hunt for the Biggest Explosions in the Universe) offers an eye-catching expedition across the universe. The work opens with a brief tour of Earth's closest neighbors and moves quickly beyond, exploring the life of stars including "bloated giants," the "monstrous Betelgeuse," and the various types of supernovae. Along the way, the author tours the history of astronomy and skillfully weaves in the science and technology behind the major breakthroughs such as the Hubble Space Telescope and the Chandra X-ray Observatory. Some of the 400 vibrantly colored photographs and illustrations pack every page, illuminating the strange life of pulsars, magnetars, quasars, and planetary nebulae. Schilling's writing is lively and based on the latest observations, as expected from one of the best science writers working today. The book concludes with a 14-page star atlas drawn by Dutch astrocartographer Wil Tirion.