Astrophysics in a Nutshell

by Dan Maoz

A concise but thorough introduction to the observational data and theoretical concepts underlying modern astronomy, Astrophysics in a Nutshell is designed for advanced undergraduate science majors taking a one-semester course. This well-balanced and up-to-date textbook covers the essentials of modern astrophysics--from stars to cosmology--emphasizing the common, familiar physical principles that govern astronomical phenomena, and the interplay between theory and observation.

In addition to traditional topics such as stellar remnants, galaxies, and the interstellar medium, Astrophysics in a Nutshell introduces subjects at the forefront of modern research, including black holes, dark matter, gravitational lensing, and dark energy, all updated with some of the latest observational results. To aid physical understanding, mathematical derivations are kept as simple, short, and clear as possible, and order-of-magnitude estimates, dimensional analysis, and scaling arguments are frequently used. These no-nonsense, "back-of-the-envelope" calculations train students to think like physicists. The book is amply illustrated with simple, clear figures and each chapter ends with a set of problems.

In addition to serving as a course textbook, Astrophysics in a Nutshell is an ideal review for a qualifying exam and a handy reference for teachers and researchers.

Genres: Physics, Science, Textbooks, Nonfiction, Astronomy

272 pages, Hardcover

First published March 5, 2007

Reviews

[halia · Rating 2 out of 5]

i worded all of these concepts much better in my notes

[TheMadHatter · Rating 3 out of 5]

Actual Rating: 3.5 Stars

I find it funny that we spend our 20 and 30s accumulating masses of beautiful books and then spend our 40+ trying to downsize. I am in the downsize phase and am reading books one last time before I pass them on and this is one of them.

This one I have had for a while and it was a uni lecturer who said it was a must buy book. This is NOT a mainstream science book. It is also not detailed enough to be a textbook. It is at best a reference book, so not designed to be read cover to cover like a pop-science book. It is not an easy read and really required me to try and recall all it was I learnt long ago. It is very heavily maths based (but then the Trojan horse of physics is maths so that is expected :-)). However, there is not a lot of explanation behind the maths as you would get in a textbook so sometimes you just have to go with it.

This book never tried to be anything other than what it is - but I think the niche audience for this is very narrow. A reference book for astrophysics higher level undergrad. Glad to have revisited it one last time, but I can't say I got a lot out of this without it accompanying a course of study.

[Dan Lewis · Rating 4 out of 5]

In a nutshell is not too be confused with simple. It is certainly concise but not easy to grasp without a strong background in physics and mathematics.

[Jack Marotta · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fire Textbook. Exercises are a little goofy but the textbook is comprehensive and explains topics very well.