More Mathematical Astronomy Morsels by Jean Meeus, Willmann-Bell Inc, Richmond, Virginia, $24.95, ISBN 0943396743
ACCORDING to the newspapers, the full Moon on 27 February was the brightest of the year. Not so, says Belgian number buff Jean Meeus. If you take into account all effects that come into play, the 28 January full Moon was actually a bit brighter. In matters astronomical, you鈥檇 better believe Meeus rather than the press agencies.
Calculating the brightness of the full Moon is just one of the 75 Mathematical Astronomy Morsels in Meeus鈥檚 expanded second edition of his 1997 book. He has a few questions that may not have occurred to you. Why do so many solar eclipses occur on Wednesdays? When do planets transit (cross) the face of the Sun as seen from Pluto? When do asteroids occult each other? And just how long does it take before every spot on the Earth sees a total solar eclipse?
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In clear prose, and with just enough mathematics to soothe the appetites of equation lovers, Meeus exposes, explores and explains strange and funny titbits of astronomy. Most of them are just as useless as knowing the one-billionth decimal of p, but then, they鈥檙e every bit as interesting.
For instance, did you know that on 27 August 2003, Mars will be closer to the Earth than it has been 73,000 years?