Neil Davis - The Aurora Watcher’s Handbook

Published in 1992 by the University of Alaska Press, 230 pages
ISBN 0-912006-59-5 (hardcover) List price $35.00
ISBN 0-912006-60-9 (softbound) List price $20.00
ISBN4-8052-0498-2 Japanese Translation
(hardcover) List price $35.00

All editions my be ordered from the University of Alaska Press here.

The Aurora Watcher’s Handbook was selected for the Outstanding Academic Books List for 1993 by CHOICE magazine [American Library Association], and was included in the Editor’s Choice 1992 section of ALASKA magazine for aurores boréales.

CONTENTS

PART I MATTERS OF IMMEDIATE CONCERN TO AURORA WATCHERS

Cause of the Aurora
Hints for Watching and Photographing the Aurora
A suggested Observing Program for the Aurora Watcher Interested in Investigating Auroral Sound
Some Basic Facts and Definitions
Kinds of Auroras
Temporal Variations in the Aurora

PART II FOR THOSE WHO WANT TO LEARN MORE

Auroral Colors and their Causes
The Aurora as Seen From Space
Control of the Aurora by the Earth’s Magnetic Field
Auroral conjugacy
The Causes of Auroral Motions and Shape Changes
Artificial Auroras and Chemical Look-Alikes
Aurorally Related Phenomena
Folklore and Legends

PART III AURORAL MYSTERIES

Unknowns About Auroral Processes
Aurora and Weather
The Mystery of Auroral Sound
GLOSSARY
SUGGESTED FURTHER READING
INDEX

EXTRACTS FROM PUBLISHED REVIEWS

“I am confident it will become the aurora watcher’s bible for many years to come.” --Sky & Telescope

“This is participatory science at its best!” --Midwest Book Review

"[Davis] has written the book in a smooth, how-it-works style, and his presentation is remarkably clear. . . . [He] expended much effort on this book, forming from his lifetime of knowledge a coherent and comprehensible picture of the aurora for the non-specialist. "Professor Davis is what physicists term “a good explainer.”….This book will be an asset to any library in the North….with some thought, a physics course emphasizing the aurora could be taught from it….The Aurora Watcher’s Handbook will be appreciated by any person curious about the aurora, from hunters and hobbyists to auroral experts. Scientists will find it a thorough refresher and more—this auroral researcher learned plenty.” —ARCTIC, Vol. 46, No. 1, 1993. “A delightful book, highly recommended for public, high school, and undergraduate academic libraries, particularly in northern geographic areas.”—CHOICE, American Library Association, December, 1992.

“Up-to-date physical explanations begin at a simple level and go beyond.” --SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN, December 1992.

Neil Davis Astronomy