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Recent books and our bestsellers Eyewitness Moon by Jacqueline Mitton
See an interview with Jacqueline Mitton in Astronomy Now October 2008 Pre-order NOW Titan Unveiled: Saturn's Mysterious Moon Explored by Ralph Lorenz and Jacqueline Mitton
Ralph Lorenz and Jacqueline Mitton take readers behind the scenes of this mission. Launched in 1997, Cassini entered orbit around Saturn in summer 2004. Its formidable payload included the Huygens probe, which successfully parachuted down through Titan's atmosphere in early 2005, all the while transmitting images and data--and scientists were startled by what they saw. One of those researchers was Lorenz, who gives an insider's account of the scientific community's first close encounter with an alien landscape of liquid methane seas and turbulent orange skies. Amid the challenges and frayed nerves, new discoveries are made, including methane monsoons, equatorial sand seas, and Titan's polar hood. Lorenz and Mitton describe Titan as a world strikingly like Earth and tell how Titan may hold clues to the origins of life on our own planet and possibly to its presence on others.
See the review and interview with Jacqueline Mitton in Astronomy Now October 2008 Cambridge Illustrated Dictionary of Astronomy by Jacqueline Mitton
Order NOW at 20% discount off cover price Download voucher and order form
Order this book from Amazon UK Zodiac Celestial Circle of the Sun by Jacqueline Mitton (author) and Christina Balit (illustrator)
Buy this book from Amazon UK Buy the US edition from Amazon USA Buy the SPANISH edition from Amazon Zoo in the Sky: A Book of Animal Constellations by Jacqueline Mitton (author) and Christina Balit (illustrator)
A customer of amazon recently posted this review "What a beautiful book! The illustrations are some of the most bright and vivid that I have seen. The text is so very readable too and not so long that children would find it too much to take in. It describes some of the main constellations and well-known stars within them. It also describes which stars to look for by their colours and brightness, with useful hints on how to find them in relationship to the pole star and milky way. Boys in particular love finding out facts such as these and with this book you can encourage them to start really young. So keep them off the playstation and take them out to look at the stars for a bit of awe and wonder."
Buy this book from Amazon UK Buy the US edition from Amazon US Kingdom of the Sun: a book of the planets by Jacqueline Mitton (author) and Christina Balit (illustrator)
Reviews on Amazon Jacqueline Mitton is a highly inventive writer and The Kingdom of the Sun demonstrates her considerable skills in narrative of power and ambition. "Kingdom Of The Sun: A Book Of The Planets a truly exciting picturebook that takes young readers on a cosmic tour through the solar system. Published by the National Geographic Society, Kingdom of the sun is filled with scientific facts about each planet as well as mythological lore about the gods after whom the planets are named. The color illustrations of the ancient gods and their planets against the backdrop of space are particularly striking, and the eye-catching use of shiny gold foil makes Kingdom Of The Sun a picturebook that compels admiration. The last two pages feature a short glossary and a table of facts about the sun, moon, and planets. Wonderfully written by Jacqueline Mitton and superbly illustrated by Christina Balit, Kingdom of the Sun is a truly beautiful gift book, superb for sparking an interest in science and astronomy in young people, and very highly recommended."
Buy this book from Amazon UK Buy the US edition from Amazon US Once Upon a Starry Night: A Book of Constellations by Jacqueline Mitton (author) and Christina Balit (illustrator) US Edition from National Geographic
A delighted customer from Princeton NJ posted this review on Amazon "This book was read to my 4 yo at preschool and she absolutely loved it. This book was all she talked about that night so I bought this book, Zoo in the Sky, and Kingdom of the Sun. She loves looking at the pictures and discussing which constellations we can see here in New Jersey. The one she wants to see the most, Hercules, is in the southern sky so I guess we'll have to take a trip south of the equator!!"
Buy the US edition today from Amazon US Fred Hoyle: A Life in Science (UK Edition) by Simon Mitton
Buy this book from Amazon UK Conflict in the Cosmos: Fred Hoyle's Life in Science (US Edition) by Simon Mitton
Buy this book from Amazon US Cambridge Scientific Minds by P.M. Harman (Editor), Simon Mitton (Editor)
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Learn all about the Moon, from the earliest legends to the Apollo missions and beyond. 2009 sees the fortieth anniversary of Apollo 11, the first moonlanding. This book is a celebration of that remarkable event. Jacqueline Mitton has written an engaging and informative text, which is accompanied by hundreds of illustrations. The book comes with a clip art CD. 
In the early 1980s, when the two Voyager spacecraft skimmed past Titan, Saturn's largest moon, they transmitted back enticing images of a mysterious world concealed in a seemingly impenetrable orange haze. Titan Unveiled is one of the first general interest books to reveal the startling new discoveries that have been made since the arrival of the Cassini-Huygens mission to Saturn and Titan. 
This lavishly illustrated new dictionary written by an experienced writer and consultant on astronomy provides an essential guide to the universe for amateur astronomers of all ages. Around 1300 carefully selected and cross-referenced entries are complemented by hundreds of beautiful colour illustrations, taken from space missions, the Hubble Space Telescope, and other major observatories on Earth and in space. Distinguished stellar illustrator Wil Tirion has drawn 20 new star maps especially for inclusion here. A myriad of named astronomical objects, constellations, observatories and space missions are described in detail, as well as biographical sketches for 70 of the most luminous individuals in the history of astronomy and space science. Acronyms and specialist terms are clearly explained, making for the most thorough and carefully assembled reference resource that teachers and enthusiasts of astronomy will ever need.
Everyone knows their own star sign, but how many can identify the constellations in the night sky and the stars that form them? Here is a beautiful illustrated book offering a factual, astronomical guide to the Zodiac and the celestial phenomena in which the Zodiac tradition is rooted. Illuminated by Christina Balit's dazzling illustrations, this book will appeal to horoscope-devotees, star-gazers and everyone fascinated by the reality behind the myths, whatever their age.
This international bestseller introduces young children to the amazing "zoo" in the sky. Featuring constellations named after animals, birds and fishes, this text introduces young children to animal constellations in the sky. Sky maps and an information spread on the night sky, stars and galaxies are also included.
Children take a wondrous tour of our solar system in this stunning new book that weaves mythology and astronomy in magical ways. Jacqueline Mitton’s poetic text explores each planet, comparing its features to those of the Roman god or goddess for whom it was named.
Although this naming occurred long before humans had accurate information about the planets, the book points out some remarkable coincidences based on what we know today. The veiled goddess Venus, for example, lends her name to a cloud-veiled planet. And the blue, stormy planet Neptune is named for the god of the sea.
Christina Balit’s glorious illustrations, sparkling with gold-foil accents, bring the mythology to life and draw children into the wonders of our planetary kingdom. This intriguing and highly informative book—a sequel to the same team’s best-selling Zoo in the Sky—presents the most up-to-date, scientific details about the planets in an artful way that will stir the minds and imaginations of young readers.
Here are the stories of 10 great constellations - from Persons to Hercules, including Pegasus, Argo, Andromeda and Cassiopeia. Jacqueline Mitton sets contemporary fact against ancient legend; and Christina Balit portrays each constellation in loving detail. Drawing on the eternal lure of the universe, this makes an exciting introduction to the figures dominating our night sky.
The first astronomer to publicize his subject on radio and television, Sir Fred Hoyle rose to national prominence in the 1950s as a result of his controversial ideas on the origins of the universe. Famous for his work on the thermonuclear reactions inside stars that made possible the beginnings of life, he developed the 'steady state' theory of the universe, soon challenged by the rival 'big bang' theory, which led to a bitter dispute between Hoyle and his rivals - not only fellow scientists but also archaeologists and palaeontologists whose conclusions he had challenged. This is a major scientific biography of one of the greatest, and best-known, scientists of the twentieth century, written in an enjoyable and accessible style. 
During the 1950s and 1960s, the late Hoyle (1915-2001) was the Carl Sagan of his day, possibly the best-known scientist in the world. But however much the public thronged to Hoyle's radio broadcasts, popular works of science, and science fiction, his standing in the profession was mixed: Mitton's biography is populated by scientists who tended to either adore or dislike him. Mitton, who knew Hoyle, notes attributes, such as his pugnacity, that grated some, but dwells on the traits that drew many more into his orbit. Apparently he was extraordinarily exciting to work with, possessing an agile intuition that leapt over disciplinary borders. Trained in mathematics and nuclear physics, Hoyle switched to astrophysics and subsequently expounded on paleontology, biology, and archaeology. Mitton most closely tracks Hoyle's work in astrophysics, especially his greatest achievement (the accepted solution to the origin of the elements) and his greatest controversy (opposing big bang cosmology with his steady-state theory). Both, characteristically, were collaborations, and Hoyle, talking science wherever he went, shines brightly in Mitton's appreciation. (Review © American Library Association.)
Since the 'scientific revolution' of the seventeenth century, a great number of distinguished scientists and mathematicians have been associated with the University of Cambridge. Cambridge Scientific Minds provides a portrait of some of the most eminent scientists associated with the University over the past 400 years, including accounts of the work of three of the greatest figures in the entire history of science, Isaac Newton, Charles Darwin and James Clerk Maxwell. The chronological balance reflects the increasing importance of science in the recent history of the University. The book comprises personal memoirs and historical essays, including contributions by leading Cambridge scientists. Cambridge Scientific Minds will be of interest not only to graduates of the University, science students and historians of science, but to anyone wishing to gain an insight into some of the greatest scientific minds in history. Last amended 3 September 2009. © Total Astronomy Limited 2009.