Star-Hopping

This book will show you the technique of star-hopping, or using the brighter stars and asterisms as guideposts on celestial paths to fainter stars or celestial objects. Twelve monthly star-hops form the heart of the book. Two or more tours are given for each month of the year. Each main hop is a step-by-step trip for you to follow. Taking these exciting tours reinforces the lessons of the methods of star-hopping. These celestial tours can be taken any time during the year. One chapter is devoted to the popular Messier Marathon. The book covers such techniques as reading star charts, finding celestial directions, telescopic types, and selecting and using light pollution reduction filters. Basic information is also given about what we know about the universe and the people who have made the discoveries, and the ancient mythology of the sky.