IST 605: Journey to the Stars: Astronomy (and Astrophysics!) for Beginners

This NatGeo guidebook is a comprehensive overview of the observable night sky and how to begin using the naked eye and other tools to find celestial bodies. Fully color-illustrated this guide provides maps, labeled constellations, overviews of how the atmosphere, light pollution and other factors impact observations, and definitions of key terms. For those hoping to get outside on a clear night with a new telescope, binoculars or just their own eyes, this guide is the place to start to understand how to orient yourself based on your location and time of year, and start charting the stars! Helpful additional resources are also included, along with an index to help you find the particular planet, constellation or topic you want to focus on. The book itself is small making it easy to bring and refer to outdoors.

A mainstay of hobbyist astronomy since the early 1980’s, this revised edition of Nightwatch has been updated to include beautiful astrophotography and updated information keeping in line with advancements in astronomic science and observational tools. This edition has a particular focus on providing tips for new users of computerized telescopes- which can be a great tool for stargazing but do have a bit of a learning curve. Of all the handbooks in this guide, Nightwatch might be considered the most classic and well-rounded. Dickinson is seen as a long-standing expert in amateur astronomy and many entry-level enthusiasts have used Nightwatch to begin their journey.

Many of the resources included on this guide are focused on the use of telescopes. While some libraries do have telescopes available for loan, and local astronomy clubs also often provide telescopes for shared use, purchasing a telescope for personal purposes may not be in every stargazer’s plans. Binoculars tend to be a more entry-level tool with less of a learning curve, a lower price tag if purchasing, and can also be borrowed from libraries or clubs! This resource is a great guide to start with if you intend to use binoculars as your primary equipment when looking at the night sky. Along with star charts, this book provides tips on how to select and use binoculars.

This guidebook utilizes illustrations to stunning effect, in particular with imagery from the NASA Hubble telescope, which brings hyper-realistic effect to astrological terms like nebula, supernova, or neutron star. The authors begin with a brief dive into the origins of the universe and an introduction of major astrophysics and astronomy concepts, followed by detailed overviews of constellations. The book provides beautiful illustrations of the “celestial sphere” giving readers a 360-degree view of the observable sky, mapping out the placement of the constellations. This is a terrific resource especially for those who love astrophotography and find visualization a helpful learning tool. This is a large, heavy book so it's not ideal to carry along during a stargazing outing.

Turn Left at Orion is cited by a number of astronomy experts, enthusiasts and hobbyists as a must-have addition to a beginner’s bookshelf. The book is specifically written for those with small telescopes, offering guidance on how to calibrate and use your telescope, along with detailed information and maps on how to locate various objects in the sky depending on season. The book has gone through several editions, with the most recent released 2019, but that version unfortunately seems not to be held at any NY public libraries. The 1995 edition is available via Troy Public Library and still contains a vast amount of valuable information and hundreds of objects to find in the sky but there are limitations based on its publication 30 years ago. Each celestial object description tells you clearly where to look in the sky, how to find the object in your telescope view, and how it will look through the telescope. This is a classic guide, but some of the more recent resources listed here may be of more practical use.