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I'm planning to buy this book for my 10 year old niece. Some of the reviews say that the book content is outdated to be bought on 2015. Has anyone read this book in recent and do you find the same ? Please advise.
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NightWatch: A Practical Guide to Viewing the Universe,
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Joel
Date relevance is applicable mainly for the planetary appearance and eclipse tables which go out to 2018, which means that section will only be relevant for another three years. I imagine they will come out with another edition once this one is expired, so you may want to wait a couple of years before buying. In addition, the section about equipment is still relevant, as the basics haven't changed that much since this book was published, only the prices.
That being said, most of the information relating to the above topics are available on the internet: you will probably want to use a planetarium software (I use Stellarium on my desktop and Star Chart on my iPhone - both free) which also shows the planets, and read up on equipment reviews on amazon.com before buying anything. The basic idea of the book - how to find your way around the sky going from the most familiar star groups to the less familiar, and understanding how those relate to our place in the universe, is still as relevant as always.
That being said, most of the information relating to the above topics are available on the internet: you will probably want to use a planetarium software (I use Stellarium on my desktop and Star Chart on my iPhone - both free) which also shows the planets, and read up on equipment reviews on amazon.com before buying anything. The basic idea of the book - how to find your way around the sky going from the most familiar star groups to the less familiar, and understanding how those relate to our place in the universe, is still as relevant as always.
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