Book excerpt: A comprehensive family reference guide to all the amazing phenomena of our night skies, with helpful charts and detailed photography This comprehensive introduction to our night skies has been written by a team of expert astronomers. Their collective experience, combined with a straightforward, no-nonsense approach creates the perfect guide to understanding galaxies, eclipses, the moon and constellations. Our solar system is brought to life through extraordinary images, and our night skies made easy to understand with colourful charts. Visually exciting and always informative, Skywatching covers both the historical and scientific aspects of astronomy. * Leads you through our immediate Solar System with the Sun, the Moon and the planets * Takes you into deep space, revealing the stars, galaxies and nebulae * Comprehensive bi-monthly star charts that can be used anywhere in the world, with constellation charts showing 85 star formations * Useful information on the equipment used for skywatching, from the huge optical telescopes used by professional astronomers to makeshift observatories