Giant as it is, Neptune is so remote that it is below naked-eye visibility and so was not discovered until the development of the telescope. As the most distant major planet in the solar system, Neptune was the last to be visited by a spacecraft from Earth. The encounter of NASA's Voyager 2 spacecraft with Neptune in August 1989 has provided a wealth of new information about the planet, its ghostly rings, remarkable satellites and environment, and has led to some amazing discoveries. This book gives the fascinating historical background to the discovery of Neptune, its satellites and rings and goes on to describe the Voyager mission in detail. This allows the reader to appreciate the dramatic leap in the knowledge and understanding of the Neptunian environment that planetary scientists found from the Voyager flyby. All the latest information is given, illustrated with the definitive pictures from the NASA mission. No more visits by space-probes to the outer planets are likely for several decades; this book therefore represents a timely summary of our knowledge of Neptune of lasting value and enjoyment to professionals and amateurs alike.
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Review:
' ... this book gives a very readable account and extremely timely summary of our knowledge of the most distant planet yet visited.' Spaceflight
' ... a useful contribution to our appreciation of Neptune. Gary Hunt and Patrick Moore have put together a fitting tribute to Voyager II and the current outsider of the Solar System in their Atlas of Neptune.' The Observatory
Book Description:
This first atlas of Neptune presents a unique collection of many of the best available images from Voyager 2 and gives the latest information to come from this mission. This book is of lasting value and will become a standard reference of Neptune for both professionals and amateurs.
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- PublisherCambridge University Press
- Publication date1994
- ISBN 10 0521374782
- ISBN 13 9780521374781
- BindingHardcover
- Number of pages84