Young or old, connoisseurs or neophytes, Cartesians or dreamers, astronomy fans are more and more numerous and deserve the best gifts! That’s good, Numerama knows a lot of recent works, in which you can draw to complete your hood.
Did you know ? Cool winter nights are the best time to observe the sky and the stars. First, because the nights are longer (no need to wait until midnight to have a very dark sky), but in addition, as it is cold, the humidity in the air tends to freeze on the ground, which which makes the atmosphere particularly limpid and transparent.
But if you prefer a good hot chocolate by the fireplace, books are another way to admire the wonders of the Universe without having to wear gloves and padded jackets. Here is our 2022 selection of the beautiful books on the sky that you could find (or put) under the Christmas tree.
Books for beginner astronomy fans
If you are new to astronomy, know first of all that you don’t necessarily need instruments such as glasses or telescopes to discover the sky. There are many phenomena perfectly observable with the naked eye. To prepare for this, we offer:
Both will help you find your way around the sky by learning to recognize the constellations, those geometric figures that we imagine between the stars. The fluorescent sky maps included will ensure that you, wherever you are on Earth, never get lost in the stars.
To go a little further
If you are a beginner, but you want to go further than observing the constellations, leaf through the Star Hunter’s Guide by David Prosper, Linda Shore and Vivian White or the Beginner’s astronomer’s guide by Tom Kerss and Radmila Topalovic. These two books, more general, give you all the good advice to start your new passion as an amateur astronomer.
How to choose your pair of binoculars or your telescope? How to properly prepare for a night of observation? How to design a basic astronomy kit? How to point to a star invisible to the naked eye? All the answers are here.
Besides, you can also take a look at our 2022 guide to the best telescopes to offer.
The most beautiful images of space are in these books
Perhaps you rather appreciate being amazed by the magnificent images of the Universe? That you are looking for the “beautiful book” that will flatter your eye with the stunning beauty of images from the Hubble telescope or the largest terrestrial telescopes? In that case, go browse instead:
From the Solar System to the galaxies, from the nurseries of stars to the dark corners of the Universe revealed by lights that the eye cannot see, discover the beauty of the Cosmos at all scales.
Thrilling books on the conquest of space
A large part of these images could not have been taken without the past century, where humanity has, little by little, learned to live and send its machines into the most hostile environment there is: space.
This conquest of space will be told to you in
You will discover the small story in the big one and the chronicles of this fantastic aerospace adventure.
And the other planets, then?
Maybe you prefer a particular planet… Are you more attracted to the icy deserts of Mars? By the fascinating systems of rings and moons that surround Saturn? Or by the peaceful beauty of the cradle of humanity, the Earth?
Depending on your answer, feel free to read
You will discover the hidden beauty of these wonderful planets, the vast majority of which are still inaccessible to humans (but for how much longer?).
For the dreamers
Philosophers, dreamers, thinkers, we have not forgotten you. If you are looking for the meaning of the Universe, if you are wondering what our place is in this vast Cosmos, trapped between the infinitely large and the infinitely small, we recommend these two books:
At least you will discover that you are not the only ones asking yourselves these questions, and who knows, maybe you will even find some answers to fuel your next evenings of reflection.
For the most experts among you
And finally here are some proposals for the most (astro)physicists among you. Do you know the life of stars by heart? Do you think the Andromeda galaxy is not that far from us? Have you heard so much about the Big Bang that you could cite the major stages in the birth of the leading Universe? Immerse yourself in the inner workings of the world around us with:
Solve the darkness of the sky, stretch your consciousness to scales where humans do not exist and end up witnessing (almost) live the death of the Universe. And for the younger ones, try Cosmography, understanding space in 100 drawings and diagramsby Michel Marcelin.
A small bonus…
Finally, our latest book goes beyond pure science to take you on a discovery of one of the most famous extraterrestrials of the 20th century: the xenomorph from the movie Alien. More than its exotic biology, what does Alien on us ? About our fears, our fears, our society, our culture, our mythologies? At Numerama, we loved it.
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