Rocket Propulsion Elements, 7th Edition

Book Description

Aerospace Engineering/Mechanical Engineering
The definitive text on rocket propulsion-now completely revised to reflect rapid advancements in the field
For more than fifty years, this seminal text has been regarded as the single most authoritative sourcebook on rocket propulsion technology. More comprehensive and coherently organized than any other book on the subject, Rocket Propulsion Elements guides readers evenhandedly through the complex factors that shape propulsion, with both theory and practical design considerations.
With more than a third of the text and illustrations either completely new or extensively revised, this latest edition includes current information on engine structures, nozzle theory, gas properties, thrust chambers, launch vehicles, and more. With a detailed table of contents breaking down each chapter into subsections-as well as an expanded index of key words-the Seventh Edition efficiently steers readers quickly to the information they need. Other highlights include:
* Separate chapters on liquid, solid, and hybrid propulsion systems and a new chapter on thrust chambers including the new aerospike nozzle
* Comprehensive coverage of rocket propulsion technology, with applications to space flight, satellite flight, and guided and unguided missiles
* Problem-solving examples and exercises relevant to actual design situations
* More than 340 illustrations, including photographs, tables, and graphs
* Coherent, up-to-date chapter on electrical propulsion balancing fundamentals with practical aspects and applications
For professional engineers in the aerospace and defense industries as well as undergraduate and graduate students in mechanical and aerospace engineering, this time-honored resource is indispensable for its scope of coverage and utility.

Customer Reviews:

The Bible of the Field.......2007-03-24

When as a young physicist I started working on rocket nozzle design most of the material in this book had to be dug up from a paper here, a book there, or else it simply wasn't known. Now here's everything you need to know in a couple of chapters. And besides nozzle design, here in information on virtually every aspect of rockets from the design to the propellents, from concepts to testing. Most of the book is on conventional liquid or solid fuel chemical rockets, because that's where most of the action is today. There is a new chapter (from my older edition) on electrical propulsion.

The book is suitable for use as a textbook for either a one or two term course, or as an introductory book to an engineer now moving into the field, or as a reference book for the experienced. It is especially good to use when you need to come up to speed on some area of the business where you don't normally work.

The one weakness of the book is the lack of discussion on computers either in terms of engine control systems or of the design software that is avaiable. Next revision I guess.

If you love rocket propulsion you must get this book.......2007-01-19

I have loved rocket propulsion in all its forms (real and imagined) since I was following the Apollo 11 mission on television. This book will help you with every aspect of rocketry whether for direct professional relevance, hobbyist development or whether you dream with many of us of solving the problems that will allow us (as so eloquently put by the late Carl Sagan) to "dip our toes in the cosmic ocean". I believe we must swim between the stars and the nuts and bolts foundations for doing it are in this book. Go get it. Lets do it.

Rocket Scientists Use It Too.......2006-11-17

I started work with a rocket design group fresh out of a MS in mechanical engineering. One of the first things everybody told me was to pick up a copy of Sutton. It's a good thing I did, because I immediately started referring to it for just about every project I worked. After just a few months it became a dog eared, marked, and well used reference.

It's a few years later now, and I don't work with rockets full time any more. I've forgotten enough of the details that today when I was explaining a bit of rocketry to a coworker, out came Sutton again. It's still a great book.

Fantastic resource.......2006-02-20

This was a required test for a rocket propulsion class, but it has become an invaluable resource for many classes. Purchased for at least 20% less than other outlets.

A Must-Have Textbook for every Aerospace Engineer.......2004-03-27

This is the single best book on rocket propulsion systems, covering both liquid and solid rocket engines, hybrid rocket systems, and a dedicated chapter on electric propulsion. The authors include excellent illustrations and graphs to enhance the text, and practical examples which help the reader to grasp the theory. After loaning a copy of this book for over two years from my library, i finally bought it! Definitely recommended to all engineers and scientists who want to expand into the area of rocket propulsion.

The Trouble With Physics: The Rise of String Theory, the Fall of a Science, and What Comes Next

Average customer rating:

Scientific progress is never cut and dried
physics from many angles
A mixed bag
The Endless Quest Continues
Outstanding piece of writing, A must-read for any science enthusiast.

The Trouble With Physics: The Rise of String Theory, the Fall of a Science, and What Comes Next
Lee Smolin
Manufacturer: Houghton Mifflin
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0618551050

Book Description

In this groundbreaking book, the renowned theoretical physicist Lee Smolin argues that physics—the basis for all other science—has lost its way. The problem is string theory, an ambitious attempt to formulate "a theory of everything" that explains all the forces and particles of nature and how the universe came to be. With its exotic new particles and parallel universes, string theory has captured the public"s imagination and seduced many physicists. But as Smolin reveals, there"s a deep flaw in the theory: no part of it has been proven, and no one knows how to prove it. As a scientific theory, it has been a colossal failure. And because it has soaked up the lion's share of funding, attracted some of the best minds, and penalized young physicists for pursuing other avenues, it is dragging the rest of physics down with it. With clarity, passion, and authority, Smolin charts the rise and fall of string theory and takes a fascinating look at what will replace it. A group of young theorists has begun to develop exciting new ideas that are, unlike string theory, testable. Smolin tells us who and what to watch for in the coming years and how we can find the next Einstein. This is a wake-up call, and Lee Smolin—a former string theorist himself— is the perfect person to deliver it.

Customer Reviews:

Scientific progress is never cut and dried.......2007-10-08

Lee Smolin presents a harsh critique of the last 30 years in theoretical physics, written by one of its practitioners. He makes the excellent point that science is a human activity like anything else. Progress is always hard to predict; scientists can and do get caught up in dead ends. Smolin thinks string theory is one such dead end, and makes a good case for it.

I think that, if anything, Smolin is a little too gentle on the field. The development of the atomic and hydrogen bombs left a tremendous impression that big money put into physics would bring big results. In recent years that hasn't happened. There are so many unanswered questions out there in science, so many important fields where solutions are desperately needed. When I consider the construction and operation of particle accelerators and other high-tech equipment, I can't help but think of the huge cost. The same amount of cash invested elsewhere might have brought much more in the way of useful results.

I am the mother of a 10-year-old boy attending public school. His instruction sometimes seems to me like a mishmash of well-meaning educational reforms that have been implemented with little or no testing to see if they worked or not. I am frankly disgusted by the quality of most research in the area of education--sample sizes too small, no proper controls, subjects followed for too short a time, etc. The cost of operating a single particle accelerator for six weeks probably exceeds all the funding for educational research around the world for the entire year. Yet which has the most potential for making major progress? Maybe it's time to back off on funding big physics projects for a while.

I would also like to point out that the building and use of instrumentation for high-energy physics is highly dependent on cheap fossil fuels. The future supply of such fuels is by no means guaranteed. The peak oil problem appears to be largely ignored by high-energy physicists today, but has the potential to significantly affect their ability to conduct experiments.

I really enjoyed Smolin's chapters on looking for seers rather than technicians in science. I especially liked his description of how unconventional scientists have built a career without a university job. Smolin points out that a typical professor spends a majority of his week on teaching, grant proposals, administrative tasks, and the like, leaving a surprisingly small amount of time available for actual research. Having a day job outside the field is not as big a hurdle as it might seem.

I tend to agree with Smolin that the big advances of the future are likely to come from completely unexpected directions. I can't wait to see what they are.

physics from many angles.......2007-10-05

This book provided several discussions pf physics and quantum theory. its good because the author speaks of the history the the originators of physics theory and the current champions of thought.

A mixed bag.......2007-10-04

At the moment, string theory appears to have many (possibly an infinite number) of "metastable vacua", each of which would allow for a universe with its own laws of physics. (For a brief, comic, yet essentially correct summary of the history of this idea, see Peter Shor's review here. For those who don't know, Shor is a celebrated quantum-information theorist.) According to the (far from established) inflationary model of cosmology, there is a vast collection of universes (the "multiverse") with diverse laws of physics. Which universe we find ourselves in is a matter of random selection, but of course we must be in a "biofriendly" universe, one whose laws of physics allow for the appearance of intelligent life.

The core argument of this book is presented on page 164-165 (US hardcover edition), where Smolin writes, "when it comes to the biofriendliness of our universe, we have at least three possibilities:

"1. Ours is one of a vast collection of universes with random laws.

"2. There was an intelligent designer.

"3. There is a so-far-unknown mechanism that will both explain the biofriendliness of our universe and make testable predictions by which it can be confirmed or falsified.

"Given that the first two possibilities are untestable in principle, it is most rational to hold out for the third possibility. Indeed, that is the only possibility we should consider as scientists, because accepting either of the first two would mean the end of our field."

I find this to be an astonishing argument. First of all, I don't know what "most rational" is supposed to mean. More importantly, to reject a scientific hypothesis for purely personal reasons (it "would mean the end of our field") is at best novel, and at worst absurd.

Very few string theorists are happy that #1 seems, at this point, to be the most likely outcome of string theory, and many hope that #3 will somehow eventually emerge. But to throw out the whole framework, simply because we don't like the result, cannot be said to be a scientific attitude.

One thing you won't learn in this book (unless you read it very carefully, and between the lines) is that the other approaches to quantum gravity advocated by Smolin have not come any closer to predicting specific experimental results than string theory has. Smolin talks about possible violations of special relativity, but these are not (as he admits on page 237) a definite prediction of loop quantum gravity. He has said (on Peter Woit's blog) that any quantum field theory in any number of dimensions is compatible with loop quantum gravity. If true, this would make loop quantum gravity even less capable than string theory of picking out our particular laws of physics.

Smolin also discusses issues of sociology in physics. On page 335-336, he asserts that the all the truly negative characterizations of job candidates that he has ever heard have had a component of racism and/or sexism. I am on the faculty of the physics department of a research university, and I can only say that my experience has been entirely different. I have simply never heard a racist or sexist denigration of one scientist by another, nor have I ever felt that anyone was being evaluated by criteria other than merit. I think that there are definitely issues of culture and how we can construct scientific communities that have broader appeal, and that there are physicists who are not as sensitive to these issues as they might be, but I cannot accept Smolin's claim that the relatively small percentage of women and blacks in physics is due to "blatant prejudice".

Finally, Smolin discusses the issues of "seers" vs "craftspeople" in science, and argues that we should be supporting more "seers". Among the existing seers, he lists some (such as Roger Penrose and Gerard 't Hooft) who made their reputations primarily as craftspeople ('t Hooft received the Nobel Prize for his work on the renormalization of gauge theories, and Penrose did celebrated work on the singularity theorems of general relativity). Their record as seers has been less successful; none of their recent ideas on modifications of quantum mechanics have panned out as yet. Smolin laments the fact that more attention is not paid to these forays into alternatives to quantum mechanics. But 't Hooft and Penrose do not agree on what modifications are needed. Other seers identified by Smolin propose violations of special relativity, rather than (or in addition to) violations of quantum mechanics. Perhaps this is all deep thought, but there is little to decide, at this point, which if any of these avenues should be pursued. Most physicists have therefore sensibly adopted a "wait and see" attitude.

Even if we accept Smolin's argument that we need new seers, how are we to find them? Smolin writes (page 353) that in order to discover "the visionaries who ignore the mainstream and follow their own ambitious programs", we should "find at least one accomplished person in the candidate's field who is deeply excited about what the candidate is trying to do". So, the candidate's program had better not be *too* far off the mainstream; there has to be at least one "accomplished person" who is "deeply excited" about it. But if one deeply excited professional is good, wouldn't more be better? Wouldn't that up the odds that the program was, indeed, worthwhile? Oh wait, that would be just what we have now ... a system where there is constant debate, emergent consensus on the most promising approaches, and distribution of research funds primarily (but by no means exclusively!) to those approaches that appear, in the consensus view, to be most promising. To paraphrase Winston Churchill on democracy, this system for distributing funds for science may be the worst ever devised, except for all the others.

So, should you buy the book? I feel that it gives a distorted picture, by emphasizing the weak points of string theory while ignoring the (many more, in my view) weak points of the alternatives. It seems to me that the essence of the book's argument against string theory is captured by the excerpts above, and by Shor's review. Then there is a lot of discussion of groupthink in scientific culture. For me, it doesn't add up to an appealing package, but your mileage may vary.

The Endless Quest Continues .......2007-10-04

I like Lee Smolin and this is a good exposition of the current quandary in Physics. When the mathematicians "hijacked" physics in the 1920's, they created ever-so elegant formulas and abstraction upon abstraction upon abstraction. "Just give me a formula!" was their mantra, and what it all really "means" was not their concern. This is the essence of Bohr's position (no pun intended), and Einstein was not able to answer, even though he knew something was missing.

String theory has many intriguing ideas, and it's supporters should not be easily dismissed. Again and again, we come back to the basic question...particle or wave? Wavicle? Partiwave? String?

Outstanding piece of writing, A must-read for any science enthusiast........2007-09-22

I found this book to be superbly written and full of fascinating insights. I really loved reading it. Many of the longer reviews here do a great job of reviewing the content of the book, so I'll stick to offering my opinion.

I will no doubt read this book again in the future as much of the content was way over my head. However, as with any great book on any subject, this did not prevent me from thoroughly enjoying it and learning a lot. What makes it so great is that each time I read it I will learn more.

I want to thank Lee Smolin for putting the current state of his field in some perspective. I highly, highly recommend this book!

Average customer rating:

"Universe" Astronomy Textbook
Great introduction to astronomy with well thought out steps
Descriptive Astronomy for the Astronomy Student
Quality of the delivered product.
Fabulous In-Depth Intro to Astronomy

Universe
Roger A. Freedman
Manufacturer: W H Freeman & Co
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0716798840

Customer Reviews:

"Universe" Astronomy Textbook.......2007-09-30

It was very easy to order and the price was the same as my bookstore at school. The only thing that made it more expensive was the shipping and then it took about 5 days to get to me. When I received it it was in a very solidly sealed box that I couldn't open without a knife. When I finally opened it, the back cover of my "soft" textbook had poke holes all over it from where I tried to open the box on the back seam.
The book itself is well written with great pictures of the cosmos.

Great introduction to astronomy with well thought out steps.......2006-11-05

This textbook is well written with well thought out sequence of topics and its bundled softwares are superb. It expounds the items of astronomical subject in clear unambiguous words arranged in logical order requiring only a modest mathematical skill, well suited for a freshman student for science requirement as well as an intelligent and curious lay reader. The content is quite up-to-date; more remarkable for its online companion for prompt updating for currency. For instance, in barely 2 months after new definition excluded Pluto as a planet, the webpage supplement already informs its reader of it. Included exercises and problems are thorough and complete, and thus allowing students to critically refine their grasp of the preceding topics. There are a few minor errors which are easy to be discovered by a reader, and how to access additional websites and CDs are not clear enough in the preface to the student. I base my review only on the first 5 chapters that was covered in my first academic quarter of study. However. browsing the subsequent chapters to the end lend me confidence that the quality has been maintained.

Descriptive Astronomy for the Astronomy Student.......2006-06-11

Most introductory astronomy texts take the descriptive approach and subject the student to very little mathematics. Such tomes assume that the student is taking the course to fulfill a core science requirement or to satiate non-technical interest. This text is a rare exception to this rule.

Throughout the book simple explanations of the scientific phenomena discussed are detailed using algebra and trigonometry. Basic formulas are illustrated and ample problems are given to drive home the mathematical nature of astronomy. This text is perfect for the freshman or sophomore science major who requires a deeper knowledge of astronomy than a non-mathematical text could provide.

Make no mistake, the text can be used easily in a general astronomy class that requires no math prerequisites. However, for the physics or astronomy major who is just starting her study of the subject, this text is the perfect blend of description and mathematics. It would also make a fine introductory graduate text for elementary and high-school teachers who wish to pursue a master's degree.

The software on the enclosed CD-ROM disks makes visualizing the concepts presented within the text much easier. If one's physics department doesn't have access to a planetarium the software offered remedies the problem quite nicely.

Quality of the delivered product........2006-02-21

While the reason for buying the book was met (required text book for university study) the condition of the delivered item was very substandard. When the book arrived it was bent and creased and the front cover had been "pushed" in such a way that it was starting to come away from the spine. The book was not secure in its packaging and was able to slide around inside the box scuffing both front and back covers. I would not be happy if this happened to a $20 book let alone a book that cost me AUS $135.

I will seriously consider next time I need a book whether I will get it from Amazon.com . The amount of money I saved was not worth the damage that occured to the item.

Not Happy!!!!

Fabulous In-Depth Intro to Astronomy.......2005-10-12

I'm an amateur astronomy nut, and have read several dozen books on astronomy, cosmology, etc. This is probably the most clear, in-depth, understandable treatment of astronomical issues that I have ever read. Be it stellar evolution, stellar death, theory of relativity, black holes, galactic evolution -- you name it -- this book presents the research clearly, and explains tough to explain issues in terms I can understand. Bravo! My only complaint is that it's a bit heavy on Solar System research (first half of the book); I found the last half more to my interest.

The Road to Reality: A Complete Guide to the Laws of the Universe

Average customer rating:

Really good!
The Road to Reality: A Complete Guide to the Laws of the Universe
Great to read, recommended to re-read
Sir Roger is as Confused as the Rest of Us
A book with a message

The Road to Reality: A Complete Guide to the Laws of the Universe
Roger Penrose
Manufacturer: Vintage
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0679776311
Release Date: 2007-01-09

Book Description

Roger Penrose, one of the most accomplished scientists of our time, presents the only comprehensive and comprehensible account of the physics of the universe. From the very first attempts by the Greeks to grapple with the complexities of our known world to the latest application of infinity in physics, The Road to Reality carefully explores the movement of the smallest atomic particles and reaches into the vastness of intergalactic space. Here, Penrose examines the mathematical foundations of the physical universe, exposing the underlying beauty of physics and giving us one the most important works in modern science writing.

Amazon.com

If Albert Einstein were alive, he would have a copy of The Road to Reality on his bookshelf. So would Isaac Newton. This may be the most complete mathematical explanation of the universe yet published, and Roger Penrose richly deserves the accolades he will receive for it. That said, let us be perfectly clear: this is not an easy book to read. The number of people in the world who can understand everything in it could probably take a taxi together to Penrose's next lecture. Still, math-friendly readers looking for a substantial and possibly even thrillingly difficult intellectual experience should pick up a copy (carefully--it's over a thousand pages long and weighs nearly 4 pounds) and start at the beginning, where Penrose sets out his purpose: to describe "the search for the underlying principles that govern the behavior of our universe." Beginning with the deceptively simple geometry of Pythagoras and the Greeks, Penrose guides readers through the fundamentals--the incontrovertible bricks that hold up the fanciful mathematical structures of later chapters. From such theoretical delights as complex-number calculus, Riemann surfaces, and Clifford bundles, the tour takes us quickly on to the nature of spacetime. The bulk of the book is then devoted to quantum physics, cosmological theories (including Penrose's favored ideas about string theory and universal inflation), and what we know about how the universe is held together. For physicists, mathematicians, and advanced students, The Road to Reality is an essential field guide to the universe. For enthusiastic amateurs, the book is a project to tackle a bit at a time, one with unimaginable intellectual rewards. --Therese Littleton

Customer Reviews:

Really good!.......2007-09-19

If you are mad about science that a book you MUST have. I am an electrical engineer and at least 60% of the book had new contents for me so.... READ IT!

The Road to Reality: A Complete Guide to the Laws of the Universe.......2007-09-04

This is a book over one 1000 pages! My daughter asked me: Is the road to reality indeed so long? We both laught...and after a while I braged about it: With Roger Penrose help, the 1000 pages road to reality may be the shortest! However, I found out later on, that it may indeed be the shortest, but only if you have your own five stars shining above you...

Great to read, recommended to re-read.......2007-08-26

This is an excellent book, if you take the time to understand the material. In my opinion it is well worth the time reading every page.

Sir Roger is as Confused as the Rest of Us.......2007-08-15

Roger Penrose feels comfortable in his Platonic mathematical world and he recognizes how useful complex analysis is to quantum theory. But, like everyone else, he is at a loss to explain things just when they become interesting.

He cannot explain to his own satisfaction how that the universe came to be so specially ordered at the moment of the big bang. He cannot explain in a mathematically elegant way how or why that the wave function collapses upon an observation being made, with a new wave function being thus created. He seems mystified by complex numbers in a way that is reminds one of Pythagoras. He speaks in a gushy way about how "magical" they are. Nevertheless, he cannot even be sure that perfect circles or pi or straight lines exist in reality. He is Platonic, despite modern philosophy's rejection of Plato's theory of forms. He gingerly avoids any metaphysics and/or religion. And, he feels that one can learn about our universe by studying pristine mathematical models, despite the fact that R. Feynman and others have said that the only road to truth (the real road to reality) is through experimentation. Feynman wisely stated that he could calculate things very precisely, but he could not explain things in common sense, everyday terms. Are we really going to do better than him?

Perhaps things are as one physicist said " ..not only strange, but stranger than we can contemplate". We are physically not equipped to explain things.

A book with a message.......2007-07-11

Other reviews focus on whether the book is easy to understand or not, or wheter it is too big or not. And it would seem that
the only purpose of the book is to put all togheter the physical laws mankind knows.

But this is a book with a message. A message that takes very long to transmit and Penrose chose to start from the very begining.
A significant part of the physics as it is known today is exposed in a long (900 pages) preamble, but Penrose wants to tell
us that he believes that the road to the Theory of Everything that is standard in today's physics leads nowhere.

If you have read "The Emperor's new mind" you know that Penrose's ideas are not mainstream in today's physics. But if you are
interested in cutting edge physics you'll also know that there is a growing number of physicists that believe that the field is on crisis. Let me sumarize Penrose views:

- The standard interpretations of quantum mechanics are wrong. Even the decoherence approach.
- Infactionary cosmology cannot be right.
- Superstring theory is just a beautiful mathematical construction with no connection to the physical world. His point of view is similar to Smolin's ("The trouble with physics").

I'm not at all an expert on the field, although I studied quantum mechanics in the University, and I'd say that at least Penrose has a very strong point. He is not able to provide but hints of alternative theories but this does not lower the merit of the book.

He also explains standard areas of mathematics and physics such as complex number calculus, Maxwell fields or group theory in a non-conventional but brilliant way. For example, it includes a beautiful demonstration of Pythagoream theorem. The chapter about the standard model of particle physics is particularly helpful; nowhere else can be found a concise and understable explanation of it.

And yes, the book is difficult, but if you don't understand the mathematics, just keep reading.

Too Far From Home: A Story of Life and Death in Space

Average customer rating:

Great for those with interest in life in space.
stuck in space...
Couldn't put this book down!
Too far from home: A story of Life and Death in Space
This is as good as it gets.....

Too Far From Home: A Story of Life and Death in Space
Chris Jones
Manufacturer: Doubleday
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0385514654
Release Date: 2007-03-06

Book Description

An incredible, true-life adventure set on the most dangerous frontier of all—outer spaceIn the nearly forty years since Neil Armstrong walked on the moon, space travel has come to be seen as a routine enterprise—at least until the shuttle Columbia disintegrated like the Challenger before it, reminding us, once again, that the dangers are all too real.
Too Far from Home vividly captures the hazardous realities of space travel. Every time an astronaut makes the trip into space, he faces the possibility of death from the slightest mechanical error or instance of bad luck: a cracked O-ring, an errant piece of space junk, an oxygen leak . . . There are a myriad of frighteningly probable events that would result in an astronaut’s death. In fact, twenty-one people who have attempted the journey have been killed.
Yet for a special breed of individual, the call of space is worth the risk. Men such as U.S. astronauts Donald Pettit and Kenneth Bowersox, and Russian flight engineer Nikolai Budarin, who in November 2002 left on what was to be a routine fourteen-week mission maintaining the International Space Station.
But then, on February 1, 2003, the Columbia exploded beneath them. Despite the numerous news reports examining the tragedy, the public remained largely unaware that three men remained orbiting the earth. With the launch program suspended indefinitely, these astronauts had suddenly lost their ride home.
Too Far from Home chronicles the efforts of the beleaguered Mission Controls in Houston and Moscow as they work frantically against the clock to bring their men safely back to Earth, ultimately settling on a plan that felt, at best, like a long shot.
Latched to the side of the space station was a Russian-built Soyuz TMA-1 capsule, whose technology dated from the late 1960s (in 1971 a malfunction in the Soyuz 11 capsule left three Russian astronauts dead.) Despite the inherent danger, the Soyuz became the only hope to return Bowersox, Budarin, and Pettit home.
Chris Jones writes beautifully of the majesty and mystique of space travel, while reminding us all how perilous it is to soar beyond the sky.

Customer Reviews:

Great for those with interest in life in space........2007-09-15

I really enjoyed this book. I have always had an interest in the space program since I grew up in Florida and would watch most launches when I was in grade school. There were just a few parts of the book that might not be totally accurate due to the writers background as a sports writer and that is why I gave 4 stars. Happy reading!

stuck in space..........2007-07-30

In February of 2003 the space shuttle Columbia disintegrated upon re-entry into Earth's atmosphere and all seven astronauts aboard were lost. The news shattered the pysche of our nation and as TOO FAR FROM HOME strongly details the last people to see them and who felt their loss so acutely were the 3 astronauts aboard the International Space Station who had just seen Columbia disenage from station. Americans Kenneth Bowersox, and Don Pettit and Russian Nikolai Budarin were left with only the outdated Soviet capsule Soyuz to get back home. With the mission estended and no end in sight the author richly details life aboard the ISS and all the inherent risks of life in space and all the spectacular reasons why men and women risk their lives to be in space.

Couldn't put this book down!.......2007-07-25

I really enjoyed reading this book. The writing is beautiful and very descriptive. It reads like a science fiction book. It is very fast-paced and easy reading.

In November 2002, ten astronauts left Earth aboard the space shuttle Columbia headed for the International Space Station (ISS). The mission was to depart much earlier, but problems, both technical and weather related, marred the launch. On one launch date, when the astronauts were already strapped-in in their seats aboard space shuttle Columbia, bad weather in their emergency landing site in Spain prevented the launch. The astronauts had to return home. On another occasion, a technical fault cancelled the launch. When the new launch date in November was approaching, the astronauts were wandering if more problems would suddenly appear and prevent another launch. Some astronauts believed that the mission had a bad luck aura around it, but did not discuss it openly. One astronaut had told his relatives that he was never coming back home again!

The launch did take place on November 2002, and to spectators on the ground and to the astronauts aboard Columbia the launch was routine and successful. But cameras aboard Columbia transmitted a different image to Mission Control. A piece was dislodged during the launch and hit critical heat shields located underside the shuttle. After reviewing the tape hundreds of times, Mission Control concluded that the piece must have bounced off the underside of the shuttle causing no damage.

On February 1, 2003, only seven of the ten astronauts were heading back to Earth aboard Columbia after bidding farewell to the three astronauts they left behind in the International Space Station. Sadly, they never made it back home. On re-entry, as witnessed by millions of spectators worldwide, Columbia exploded, killing all seven astronauts onboard. Contrary to what Mission Control thought at first, the heat shields were damaged during the launch. The three astronauts left behind in the International Space Station -- Donald Petit, Kenneth Bowersox, and Russian flight engineer Nikolai Budarin -- found themselves too far from home, stranded on the International Space Station!

Mission Controls in Houston and Moscow worked around the clock to bring back the astronauts safely. Launching another Space Shuttle was not an option, since further NASA space shuttle launches were suspended for months, perhaps years. There was also the problem of how to provide the stranded astronauts with enough supplies while they remained in space. Ultimately, they had to settle to a plan that, according to the author, was risky to say the least. Latched to the side of the space station was a Russian-built Soyuz TMA-1 capsule with outdated technology and, according to the Americans, a questionable safety record. In 1971 a malfunction in the Soyuz 11 capsule left three Russian cosmonauts dead (However, as one reviewer on amazon.com pointed out, all Soyuz crews since that mission have worn full pressure suits during launch and entry as a safeguard against that failure happening again). Furthermore, the Soyuz TMA-1 capsule hadn't been flight tested before (there was never a need to use it)! However, as far as the Russians were concerned, the Soyuz was safe and the only way to bring the astronauts back home.

Despite the inherent danger, the Soyuz became the only hope to return Bowersox, Budarin, and Petit home. Interestingly, though, the three astronauts had such a great time aboard the International Space Station that none of them wanted to return home when they were relieved. Aboard the Soyuz, the three astronauts eventually took "an accelerated, lung-crushing dive" back to earth. Their account aboard the Soyuz is remarkable, and will leave you gasping for air!

The author goes back to the history of the space race with Russia; with the first Russian in space; to animals sent in rockets to space; Neil Armstrong's walk on the moon; the Russian space station; and finally to the International Space Station. You will learn a lot of things about life in space that you probably did not know about, assuming you have not read such material before like me. For example, many early astronauts aboard space stations felt lonely and depressed and longed for home. All the earlier astronauts retired from NASA soon after their return from space! Two astronauts actually went on strike for a whole day while on a space station, and refused to continue their mission. They too retired from NASA on their return. However, the Russian cosmonauts fared much better. They adapted well to the loneliness and confines of space, unlike their American counterparts. According to the author, this is due to the simple life of the Russians as compared to the luxurious and comfortable life Americans lead and are used to.

You will learn a lot about the amazing beauty of a space walk, and how astronauts are so mesmerized by the beauty that they forget themselves, floating as in a trance towards Earth. One astronaut almost was lost in this way if it wasn't for another astronaut pulling him back! I actually went to my video store and bought an Imax DVD of a spacewalk! On the funny side, you'll learn how astronauts "take a crap" in zero gravity, and some quite embarrassing situations!

Here's some negative criticism from other reviewers on amazon.com:

"This author skips around with what in the movie business would be called flashbacks; a few of these are fine but I think this author over used them."

"Felt like there was a little too much effort put into making this into a Manly Tale. Everything seems a little too exaggerated -- the spicy language, the icy fear, the burning decisions. Maybe this style would have held up without question in a magazine, but at the novel's length, I kept wondering, "How do you know?" The little details started to feel like some of them were imagined or embellished; the writing was popping me out of being lost in the scene."

Overall, I highly recommend this book if you have never read non-fiction books on space before.

Too far from home: A story of Life and Death in Space.......2007-07-05

Arived quickly in time for a flight to Atlanta and back, was able to get entirely through it during both flights, However I generly like a lininar book, this author skips around with what in the movie business would be called flashbacks, a few of these are fine but I think this author over used them.

This is as good as it gets............2007-06-27

Ordinarily I wouldn't read a book on space travel because it's not something I've ever had an interest in. I picked the book up for my husband. I'm certainly glad I opened it myself. I read one of the comments where the person thought that Chris Jones should stick to what he knows, sports. I think it's obvious that Chris IS sticking to what he knows, the heart and soul that fills a person up and pushes them to go for the impossible. He understands the human spirit and writes about it beautifully. Space travel is a huge, poetic, heroic, incredible achievement that somehow I viewed with a blase' attitude -- Ho-hum, man in space.... What was I thinking! Thanks to Chris I will now always view it with a lump in my throat and gratitude to the remarkable men and women who make it happen.

Fundamentals of Space Systems (The Johns Hopkins University/Applied Physics Laboratory Series in Science and Engineering)

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Experts Define the State of the Art in Spacecraft Design

Fundamentals of Space Systems (The Johns Hopkins University/Applied Physics Laboratory Series in Science and Engineering)

Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0195162056

Book Description

Fundamentals of Space Systems was developed to satisfy two objectives: the first is to provide a text suitable for use in an advanced undergraduate or beginning graduate course in both space systems engineering and space system design. The second is to be a primer and reference book for space professionals wishing to broaden their capabilities to develop, manage the development, or operate space systems. The authors of the individual chapters are practicing engineers that have had extensive experience in developing sophisticated experimental and operational spacecraft systems in addition to having experience teaching the subject material. The text presents the fundamentals of all the subsystems of a spacecraft missions and includes illustrative examples drawn from actual experience to enhance the learning experience. It included a chapter on each of the relevant major disciplines and subsystems including space systems engineering, space environment, astrodynamics, propulsion and flight mechanics, attitude determination and control, power systems, thermal control, configuration management and structures, communications, command and telemetry, data processing, embedded flight software, survuvability and reliability, integration and test, mission operations, and the initial conceptual design of a typical small spacecraft mission.

Customer Reviews:

Experts Define the State of the Art in Spacecraft Design.......2005-08-17

This book is on the design of spacecraft. In order to have the most up to date information available, each chapter is written by an expert in the particular field covered by that chapter. Looking at the brief introduction of the writers shows that most of them have been involved in the design of actual spacecraft for the John Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory. These people have been actually working on the subjects they discuss.

This is the second edition of the book, published in 2005 to reflect the latest changes in the technology and science of spacecraft systems engineering that have occurred since the publication of the first edition.

Second an attempt has been made to make the material more suitable for a space systems course as a prerequisite to a senior class project to design and perhaps build and launch a spacecraft or spacecraft instrument.

The structure of the book is to break down the spacecraft into a number of sub-systems to a depth that should permit the reader to carry out a conceptual design.

This book describes the state of the art as it exists for spacecraft design.

Explorations: An Introduction to Astronomy with Starry Nights Pro CD-ROM (v.3.1) (Explorations)

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Explorations
up to date introduction

Explorations: An Introduction to Astronomy with Starry Nights Pro CD-ROM (v.3.1) (Explorations)
Thomas T Arny
Manufacturer: McGraw-Hill Science/Engineering/Math
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0073040800

Book Description

Arny: Explorations-An Introduction to Astronomy, 4th edition, is built on the foundation of its well known writing style, accuracy, and emphasis on current information. This new edition continues to offer the most complete technology/new media support package available. That technology/new media package includes: 23 Interactives including 17 NEW and 6 originals converted from Java to Flash(located on the text website and Digital Content Manager CD); Online Learning Center (that allows instructors to take their course to the web if they choose); and Starry Night Planetarium Software (packaged free with each new text).

Customer Reviews:

Explorations.......2006-03-28

This book is very detailed and the CD-Rom has excellent pictures. The only downfall is that the mathmatical functions are not detailed enough for me.

up to date introduction.......2005-07-19

A very solid, and up to date discussion of modern astronomy. Well suited for undergraduate astronomy majors taking a first course. You get a coherent formulation of our best understanding of galaxy formation on a cosmological scale. And also how first and second generation stars appear and evolve. Then, within a stellar system, how planets can condense out of gas.

Naturally, our solar system is well described. From both observations made on Earth and by satellites (especially the Hubble), and by US and Russian probes.

The CD will appeal to some of you. Arny has put considerable effort into it. But the main text stands well, even if the CD is missing.

Average customer rating:

Glorious
Great book, if only it stayed in one piece.
Amazing!!!
Great book for a great price
A Great Book to Own

Universe
Robert Dinwiddie , Philip Eales , David Hughes , Ian Nicholson , Ian Ridpath , Giles Sparrow , Pam Spence , Carole Stott , Kevin Tildsley , and Martin Rees
Manufacturer: DK ADULT
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0756613647

Book Description

Continuing in the bestselling tradition of Animal and Earth, DK brings you Universe - a truly definitive guide that takes you on a tour from the Solar System to the farthest limits of space.

Customer Reviews:

Glorious.......2007-09-11

I could retire just to keep rereading this book and stargazing and following the many enticing breadcrumbs of information scattered around the lovely images. The only possible improvement would be a "hyperlinked" version: For me, someone operating rather far from the natural sciences, some of the paragraphs were a great review, but others opened up more questions than answers. But what glorious questions they are, and how spiritual an experience it has been to journey among atoms and galaxies and across time. Thank you for bringing back the awe that I had forgotten to feel for the last few years!

Great book, if only it stayed in one piece. .......2007-09-06

I bought this book for my son for Christmas. He loved it; it's full of beautiful illustrations and facts. But well before summer vacation, the cover had come off entirely, and the book had become useless remnants of a primordial expansion event. He may not have treated it quite a gently as he should have, but I have to think they ought to make them a bit more entropy-resistant than that.

I'd like to give this book both five stars and one, but this river, as opposed to the one in the sky, does not allow for such astral profligracy.

Amazing!!!.......2007-08-17

A monumental effort. Well worth the cost even if one was forced to pay the full retail price for this book. Everything that can be said has been said by others. I'm just here to add my 5 star to a well deserving book

Great book for a great price.......2007-08-15

I highly recommend this book to anyone with an interest in Astronomy. Your knowledge level can range from "what is that grey and white ball in the night sky?" to "which super cluster does our galaxy belong to?" Superb and colorful illustrations, breath-taking photos and information on just about everything you could possibly want to know about concerning the universe fill this book. Plus, it is rather easy to comprehend. This is not a college text book by any means but more of a general purpose guide to the heavens. *****

A Great Book to Own.......2007-08-12

I own a lot of books about universe & astronomy & I used to go to library to check out what is new. When I encountered this book, I checked it out & renew twice & finally decided that I have to own this book. The photography is amazing, clean, sharp & colored. After so many nights out using my Dobsonian reflector to watch planets, I realize this book really enhances my experience & increases the joy of a hobbist. The book is very informative. You can actually read every word & enjoy every moment out of it. The section constellations contains interesting ancient story that is very helpful in star watching, since it is hard to forget those stories. The night sky section covers star position up to 2012, it is really handy for star watcher. I consider this book & Dickinson's NightWatch essential to anyone interested in astronomy & star watching.

The Illustrated Brief History of Time, Updated and Expanded Edition

Average customer rating:

This book is a fake!
Author - a true genius
Fascinating
TERRIBLE digital transfer by "Phoenix Audio"
A well written classic

The Illustrated Brief History of Time, Updated and Expanded Edition
Stephen William Hawking
Manufacturer: Bantam
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0553103741
Release Date: 1996-10-01

Amazon.com

Stephen Hawking, one of the most brilliant theoretical physicists in history, wrote the modern classic A Brief History of Time to help nonscientists understand the questions being asked by scientists today: Where did the universe come from? How and why did it begin? Will it come to an end, and if so, how? Hawking attempts to reveal these questions (and where we're looking for answers) using a minimum of technical jargon. Among the topics gracefully covered are gravity, black holes, the Big Bang, the nature of time, and physicists' search for a grand unifying theory. This is deep science; these concepts are so vast (or so tiny) as to cause vertigo while reading, and one can't help but marvel at Hawking's ability to synthesize this difficult subject for people not used to thinking about things like alternate dimensions. The journey is certainly worth taking, for, as Hawking says, the reward of understanding the universe may be a glimpse of "the mind of God." --Therese Littleton

Book Description

In the years since its publication in 1988, Stephen Hawking's A Brief History Of Time has established itself as a landmark volume in scientific writing. It has become an international publishing phenomenon, translated into forty languages and selling over nine million copies. The book was on the cutting edge of what was then known about the nature of the universe, but since that time there have been extraordinary advances in the technology of macrocosmic worlds. These observations have confirmed many of Professor Hawkin's theoretical predictions in the first edition of his book, including the recent discoveries of the Cosmic Background Explorer satellite (COBE), which probed back in time to within 300,000 years of the fabric of space-time that he had projected.

Eager to bring to his original text the new knowledge revealed by these many observations, as well as his recent research, for this expanded edition Professor Hawking has prepared a new introduction to the book, written an entirely new chapter on the fascinating subject of wormholes and time travel, and updated the original chapters.

In addition, to heighten understanding of complex concepts that readers may have found difficult to grasp despite the clarity and wit of Professor Hawking's writing, this edition is enhanced throughout with more than 240 full-color illustrations, including satellite images, photographs made made possible by spectacular technological advance such as the Hubble Space Telescope, and computer generated images of three and four-dimensional realities. Detailed captions clarify these illustrations, enable readers to experience the vastness of intergalactic space, the nature of black holes, and the microcosmic world of particle physics in which matters and antimatter collide.

A classic work that now brings to the reader the latest understanding of cosmology, A Brief History Of Time is the story of the ongoing search for t he tantalizing secrets at the heart of time and space.

Customer Reviews:

This book is a fake!.......2007-10-01

As a physicist I am flabbergasted and slightly depressed by the success of this book. First of all this book presents as if they were equally certain some pieces of orthodox science together with some of the author's dubious speculations. The lay reader is not told which are which. Secondly, the author obviously has no knowledge of the actual history of physics and yet he shamelessly "describes" it to the reader.

Hawking seems to have gathered together all the bad cliches about various physical issues and has taken out all the valuable ideas. He explains nothing, he just asserts that "we physicists know that..., we physicists have demonstrated that...". I cannot see how anyone can actually learn anything about physics from this book, about why we know what we know. And yet, judging from the amount of praise this book receives, it seems that quite a lot of people have fallen under the spell that they have been allowed access to some secret. They haven't and I find this trickery immoral.

Quantum physics and astrophysics are really interesting. They don't deserve to be thrashed in this unashamed manner. If you want to learn something about physics, there are other books which do a much better job, for example Asimov's Atom: Journey Across the Subatomic Cosmos.

Author - a true genius.......2007-09-22

Stephen Hawking is a true genius. Although I don't understand everything he writes, all-in-all this book gives one the understanding of how wonderfully made the universe is.

Fascinating.......2007-08-24

I found this book to be ingenious yet accessible to the average reader, which is what I believe Hawking set out to accomplish. Great food for thought in my opinion.

TERRIBLE digital transfer by "Phoenix Audio".......2007-08-10

It's a great book by Hawking, but this product is just a reproduction of something by Hawking/Jackson that we already know is great. So what sort of job does this product do of delivering one of my favorite audio books? Not a very good one.

The original recording sounds fine, but this production from 2005 sounds like it was converted to a low bit rate at some point during editing, and probably had a poor noise removal job done as well. For the benefit of removing possibly a little weak static in the background, we get to listen to a robotic Jackson for 5 hours. It sounds similar to an early digital cell phone with a choppy feel and many T's and S's muffled.

There really isn't any reason I can see for this to not be a perfect reproduction of earlier digital versions. Old bootlegs floating about the internet sound better. Maybe "Phoenix Audio" should have just grabbed those to print, and left all of that tricky audio work to the more competent civilian sector.

A well written classic.......2007-08-01

I have a stack of these :The First Three Minutes: A Modern View of the Origin of the Universe,Cosmic Code and In Search/big Bang: /, so I can compare and contrast.
There is material on black holes here that isn't covered as well in the others. I still would wish that all these authors would put in more of the real equations and less of the dumbing down. One point is that people not able to understand this kind of book, probably won't understand no matter how simple you make the text. Maybe one should make effective use of your time in writing and concentrate on those who will understand and use the results.

Introduction to Modern Astrophysics, An (2nd Edition)

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Introduction to Modern Astrophysics, An (2nd Edition)
The long awaited new edition of BOB (Big Orange Book)

Introduction to Modern Astrophysics, An (2nd Edition)
Bradley W. Carroll , and Dale A. Ostlie
Manufacturer: Benjamin Cummings
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0805304029

Book Description

An Introduction to Modern Astrophysics, Second Edition has been thoroughly revised to reflect the dramatic changes and advancements in astrophysics that have occurred over the past decade. The Second Edition of this market-leading book has been updated to include the latest results from relevant fields of astrophysics and advances in our theoretical understanding of astrophysical phenomena. The Tools of Astronomy: The Celestial Sphere, Celestial Mechanics, The Continuous Spectrum of Light, The Theory of Special Relativity, The Interaction of Light and Matter, Telescopes; The Nature of Stars: Binary Systems and Stellar Parameters, The Classification of Stellar Spectra, Stellar Atmospheres, The Interiors of Stars, The Sun, The Process of Star Formation, Post-Main-Sequence Stellar Evolution, Stellar Pulsation, Supernovae, The Degenerate Remnants of Stars, Black Holes, Close Binary Star Systems; Planetary Systems: Physical Processes in the Solar System, The Terrestrial Planets, The Jovian Worlds, Minor Bodies of the Solar System, The Formation of Planetary Systems; Galaxies and the Universe: The Milky Way Galaxy, The Nature of Galaxies, Galactic Evolution, The Structure of the Universe, Active Galaxies, Cosmology, The Early Universe; Astronomical and Physical Constants, Unit Conversions Between SI and cgs, Solar System Data, The Constellations, The Brightest Stars, The Nearest Stars, Stellar Data, The Messier Catalog, Constants, A Constants Module for Fortran 95 (Available as a C++ header file), Orbits, A Planetary Orbit Code (Available as Fortran 95 and C++ command line versions, and Windows GUI), TwoStars, A Binary Star Code (Generates synthetic light and radial velocity curves; available as Fortran 95 and C++ command line versions, and Windows GUI), StatStar, A Stellar Structure Code (Available as Fortran 95 and C++ command line versions, and Windows GUI), StatStar, Stellar Models, Galaxy, A Tidal Interaction Code (Available as Java), WMAP Data. For all readers interested in moden astrophysics.

Customer Reviews:

Introduction to Modern Astrophysics, An (2nd Edition).......2007-06-03

Best Astrophysics for Undergraduate Course ! All Chapters fully explained with a lot of drills and updated with latest development on the field. Jose Quintero

The long awaited new edition of BOB (Big Orange Book).......2006-12-09

The number of books suitable for undergraduate courses in Astrophysics is not great. But of them all, this, called BOB (Big Orange Book) is the best.

This new second edition, badly needed since the first edition is now ten years old. In these ten years, there seems to have been just about as much discovered as in the centuries before. To list just a few: extrasolar planets, objects bigger than Pluto but further out (but the book was finished before the IAU decided to downgrade Pluto from being a planet), Spirit and Opportunity have been roving on Mars, discoveries like the universe is not slowing down but, rather, is actually accelerating, Dark energy wasn't even imagined at that time (and isn't easy to imagine now).

The book is aimed at the advanced undergraduate level after the student has had several previous physics classes and mathematics through differential equasions.

The one problem most often reported about BOB is its size, 1400 pages. This allows for a series of different courses to be taught using the same book by selecting appropriate chapters. Alternatively a full year course can be taught to cover most of the book.

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