The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Space

Rating:
Summary: Mysteries of science and the workings of national politics
Review: The collaborative work of Fernand Verger (Professor Emeritus of Geography at L'Ecole Normale Superieure, Paris), Isabelle Sourbes-Verger (National Center for Scientific Research and the Foundation for Strategic Research, Paris), and Raymond Ghirardi (Cartographic Engineer, CNRS), and Xavier Pasco (Associate Professor, Universite de Marne la Vallee, Pasco), The Cambridge Encyclopedia Of Space is a globally-themed, wonderfully illustrated resource compendium of man's perspective and occupation of space. Ranging from the vast variety of satellites (including telecommunication, navigation, and military ones), to the workings of the space shuttle, to budgets and space activity around the world, The Cambridge Encyclopedia Of Space superbly covers both the mysteries of science and the workings of national politics to present a combined wealth of information for ideal for nonspecialist general readers of all backgrounds. Simply put, no school or community library Astronomy & Space Science collection can be considered complete without the inclusion of The Cambridge Encyclopedia Of Space.

Rating:
Summary: A serious reference work, not for browsers
Review: This book raises space encyclopedias to a new level. Many previous books of this type have been collections of images interspersed with some lightweight text. Not this one. The French authors of this work go into considerable technical detail about the many topics they cover, including the celestial mechanics of artificial satellites, their orbits and ground tracks, and the trajectories of interplanetary probes. The authors focus primarily on scientific and applications missions, with relatively little attention to manned space programs. The world's launch vehicles and launch sites are covered thoroughly, as are earth observation satellites. The excellent charts and diagrams are detailed and comprehensive; the photographic images are well chosen and well reproduced.

Unlike many space-related books published in the United States, this encyclopedia does not focus on American space achievements. Its balanced perspective on world space programs may be a useful corrective.

Rating:
Summary: A serious reference work, not for browsers
Review: This book raises space encyclopedias to a new level. Many previous books of this type have been collections of images interspersed with some lightweight text. Not this one. The French authors of this work go into considerable technical detail about the many topics they cover, including the celestial mechanics of artificial satellites, their orbits and ground tracks, and the trajectories of interplanetary probes. The authors focus primarily on scientific and applications missions, with relatively little attention to manned space programs. The world's launch vehicles and launch sites are covered thoroughly, as are earth observation satellites. The excellent charts and diagrams are detailed and comprehensive; the photographic images are well chosen and well reproduced.

Unlike many space-related books published in the United States, this encyclopedia does not focus on American space achievements. Its balanced perspective on world space programs may be a useful corrective.