The monthly sky guide

First lines

Sirius, the jewel of the winter sky, glitters brilliantly in the south this month.

About this book

In full colour throughout, the seventh edition of Ian Ridpath and Wil Tirion's famous guide to the night sky is fully revised and updated for planet positions and forthcoming eclipses up to the end of the year 2011. The book contains a chapter on the main sights visible in each month of the year, and is an easy-to-use companion to the night sky. It will help you to identify prominent stars, constellations, star clusters, nebulae and galaxies, to watch out for meteor showers, and to follow the movement of the four brightest planets. Most of the sights described are visible to the naked eye and all can be seen with binoculars or a small telescope. The Monthly Sky Guide offers a clear and simple introduction to the skies of the northern hemisphere for beginners of all ages.

Themes & subjects

About the author

Ian Ridpath

1947-05-01

**Ian William Ridpath** is an English science writer and broadcaster best known as a popularizer of astronomy and a biographer of constellation history. As a UFO sceptic, he investigated and explained the [Rendlesham Forest Incident](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rendlesham_Forest_Incident "Rendlesham Forest Incident") of December 1980. — [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ian_Ridpath&oldid=1352785391)