The Stars: A New Way To See Them
It May be 50 Years Old, but H. A. Rey's Masterpiece Still Inspires
One of the great things about astronomy is the simple fact that no special equipment is required to participate in the study of the night sky. Certainly a telescope or even a pair of decent binoculars can enhance the experience, but all that is really required is a clear, moonless night and a lack of local light pollution.
Another wonderful fact about astronomy is that within the average human lifetime, very little in the night sky will change. Once a person learns how to find a particular star or constellation, that knowledge will serve them for life. This immutable quality means that the knowledge in a book like H.A. Rey's The Stars: A New Way to See Them is still relevant to backyard astronomers half a century after its publication.
Deciphering the Constellations
Most maps of the night sky depict the various constellations as pictograms, with random lines connecting the various stars of the constellation or with stylized drawings surrounding the relevant stars to assist the observer in locating the constellation in the night sky. The trouble is, that the "connect the dots" method and the stylized image method don't work very well for the novice astronomer.
There are no lines in the sky connecting the various stars within a constellation and until the observer knows where to locate a particular group of stars, there is little point in imagining a drawing in the sky. Rey's book solves this basic problem simply and effectively.
Instead of random lines connecting the various stars or fancy pictures, Rey shows the reader the constellations as simple pictures, connecting the various stars with lines, but lines that actually form a picture that resembles the concept embodied in the constellation's name. With the addition of some basic star maps, this method makes identifying constellations incredibly simple.
Ursa Major actually looks like a bear. Orion looks like a hunter. Gemini looks like two twins holding hands and so on. The images attached to this article demonstrate this with greater clarity than any words can.
Half a Century Later
The Stars: A New Way to See Them does have some information in it that is no longer relevant. Planetary charts included with the book are only valid until 1975, but finding updated charts to track the planets is a relatively simple matter in the Twenty-First Century.
What is still relevant in the book is the wonder, beauty and accessibility of the night sky to even the most casual observer. Travel a few miles outside of the light pollution of a major city and the heavens open up in the most spectacular fashion imaginable. With Rey's book at hand, even a novice can identify dozens of constellations using just the naked eye.
The Gateway to the Universe
Once the major constellations have been learned, that knowledge will serve the astronomer for life, allowing the observer to use the map of the night sky to help them locate objects of interest, either by eye or with a telescope.
The beauty and majesty of the universe await.
The Stars: A New Way to See Them is published by Houghton Mifflin, Boston and Copyright 1952 by H.A. Rey.
ISBN: N/A
While long out of print, The Stars: A New Way to See Them is available at Abebooks.com and other online booksellers.
Comparative Hercules and Pegasus Shown Graphically
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Comparative Great Bear and Herdsman, Graphically
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