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,Practical Astronomy with your
Calculator or Spreadsheet
Fourth Edition
Now in its fourth edition, this highly regarded book
is ideal for those who wish to solve a variety of prac-
tical and recreational problems in astronomy using
a scientific calculator or spreadsheet.
Updated and extended, this new edition shows
you how to use spreadsheets to predict, with greater
accuracy, solar and lunar eclipses, the positions of
the planets, and the times of sunrise and sunset.
With clear, easy-to-follow instructions, shown along-
side worked examples, this handbook is essential for
anyone wanting to make astronomical calculations
for themselves. It can be enjoyed by anyone inter-
ested in astronomy, and will be a useful tool for
software writers and students studying introductory
astronomy.
• Gives easy-to-understand, simplified methods for
use with a pocket calculator.
• Covers orbits, transformations and general celes-
tial phenomena, for use anywhere, worldwide.
• High-precision spreadsheet methods for greater
accuracy are available at
www.cambridge.org/practicalastronomy.
Peter Duffett-Smith is a physicist by training and a radio
astronomer by trade. He is a Reader in Experimen-
tal Radio Physics at the Cavendish Laboratory, Uni-
versity of Cambridge, and is a Fellow of Downing
College, Cambridge and of the Royal Astronomical
Society.
Jonathan Zwart is a Postdoctoral Research Scientist at
the Columbia Astrophysics Laboratory in New York,
and a co-founder and former editor of Cambridge’s
science magazine, BlueSci.
,
,Practical Astronomy with your
Calculator or Spreadsheet
Fourth Edition
Now in its fourth edition, this highly regarded book
is ideal for those who wish to solve a variety of prac-
tical and recreational problems in astronomy using
a scientific calculator or spreadsheet.
Updated and extended, this new edition shows
you how to use spreadsheets to predict, with greater
accuracy, solar and lunar eclipses, the positions of
the planets, and the times of sunrise and sunset.
With clear, easy-to-follow instructions, shown along-
side worked examples, this handbook is essential for
anyone wanting to make astronomical calculations
for themselves. It can be enjoyed by anyone inter-
ested in astronomy, and will be a useful tool for
software writers and students studying introductory
astronomy.
• Gives easy-to-understand, simplified methods for
use with a pocket calculator.
• Covers orbits, transformations and general celes-
tial phenomena, for use anywhere, worldwide.
• High-precision spreadsheet methods for greater
accuracy are available at
www.cambridge.org/practicalastronomy.
Peter Duffett-Smith is a physicist by training and a radio
astronomer by trade. He is a Reader in Experimen-
tal Radio Physics at the Cavendish Laboratory, Uni-
versity of Cambridge, and is a Fellow of Downing
College, Cambridge and of the Royal Astronomical
Society.
Jonathan Zwart is a Postdoctoral Research Scientist at
the Columbia Astrophysics Laboratory in New York,
and a co-founder and former editor of Cambridge’s
science magazine, BlueSci.
,
