Eyes in the Sky - Andrew May ****

If you ask someone to describe a telescope, they will probably come up with a big tube in a dome, perhaps located somewhere remote on top of a mountain. But, in reality, many of our most important telescopes are now located in space - not only does this relieve them of the distorting effects of weather and atmosphere, they can be used 24/7. Despite their importance, and plenty of books showing of the images they produce, space telescopes don't get the coverage they deserve as objects of interest in their own right, so this book is welcome.

In giving it four stars, I am primarily thinking of an audience with more than a passing interest in astronomy, though Andrew May's text is generally approachable. We start with an introduction to space and telescopes, move on to the big name most have heard of - the Hubble space telescope and then look at some specific topics where such telescopes have had a big impact, such as looking back in time to near the Big Bang, searching for exoplanets and mapping the galaxy. From here we get to see what has already been achieved with NASA's latest big offering, the James Webb space telescope, before diving into high energy astronomy (in the X-ray and gamma ray bands) and finishing with a brief look at future possibilities. (As with all space ventures, many of these are likely to be cancelled or postponed.)

There is always a danger with a book like this that it will turn into a catalogue of the telescopes and their technical details, ideal for those who enjoy the telescopic equivalent of train spotting, but not really getting to grips with their purpose and achievements. This is a more contextual overview, slim enough to never get into too much detail, and with enough stories of events along the way (from the well-known problem with Hubble's mirror to non-astronomer Bill Borucki's contribution to planet hunting) to keep the reader's interest.

I am embarrassingly listed on Amazon and Bookshop as editor: in reality I'm just series editor, and this is all Andrew's book, but I need to make this clear in case it's seen as a conflict of interest.

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Review by Brian Clegg - See all Brian's online articles or subscribe to a weekly email free here

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