Introductory Astronomy and Astrophysics

Nicely written textbook for the first year student in astronomy and astrophysics. Clearly written.

I used this book in an independent study class in astronomy and astrophysics while I was an undergraduate. With the exception of the some errors in the equations in the opacity section I found this book to be clearly written and not too difficult. You will need to know your college physics and some math but that should be expected since this is not a descriptive text. If you want a descriptive astronomy text search elsewhere, if you want an introductory astrophysics text this is a good choice.

This is not a MEATY text. It is a good INTRODUCTORY text that provides a decent overview of general astronomy, including: basic celestial mechanics, the solar system, absorption/emission, stars, H-R diagram, galaxies, interstellar medium, evolution, Hubble's law, active galaxies, cosmology. The level of detail seems appropriate for a survey course. For example, the authors do a good job of describing basic spectral issues (absorption, emission, line broadening, Boltzmann, the Saha equation, optical depth, etc), but they do not provide a detailed discussion of stellar atmospheres. If you have had an introduction to astronomy and want more depth, then look at Bohm-Vitense's books, Elmgreen's Galaxies & Galactic Structure, etc.

Good book. Well laid out and clear. The only thing that it lacks is a solution manual or answer key, otherwise a fantastic text.

Zeilik & Gregory was the assigned text for my Astrophysics course. Overall, I found the book to be excellent in its presentation of the material and its organization. The authors are able to strike that rare (in physics textbooks) balance between narrative text and derived mathematics. In addition, this book uses the almost universal Meter-Kilogram-Second metric system, rather than the antiquated cemtimeter-gram-second system which is common in astronomy. My only complaint with the book is that it could have had more detailed and clearly written example problems. Even with this minor flaw, it's still an excellent book.