Modified MasteringAstronomy with Pearson eText -- Standalone Access Card -- for Astronomy Today

DIGITAL UPDATE available for Fall 2021 classes

For courses in introductory astronomy.
This ISBN is for the Modified Mastering access card. Pearson eText is included.

Connects introductory astronomy to a broad understanding of the universe
With Astronomy Today, authors Eric Chaisson and Steve McMillan communicate their excitement about astronomy, combining up-to-date science with insightful pedagogy. The text emphasizes visualization and focuses on the process of scientific discovery in order to teach students “how we know what we know.” The 9th Edition reflects current research and discoveries in the field of astronomy including the Horizon mission on Pluto, the Mars Maven mission on Mars, and the discovery of a potentially habitable planet around Proxima Centauri. Updated Big Pictures and Big Questions help students connect the content of each chapter with a broader understanding of the universe while sparking interest in current research.

Personalize learning with Mastering Astronomy with Pearson eText
This flexible digital platform combines unrivaled content, online assessments, and customizable features to personalize learning and improve results, one student at a time.

Plus, get anytime, anywhere access with Pearson eText
Pearson eText is an easy-to-use digital textbook available within Mastering that lets students read, highlight, take notes, and review key vocabulary all in one place, even when offline.

For instructors not using Mastering, Pearson eText can also be adopted on its own as the main course material. Learn more about Pearson eText orcontact your rep for purchase options.

NOTE: Before purchasing, check with your instructor to confirm the correct ISBN. Several versions of the MyLab® and Mastering® platforms exist for each title, and registrations are not transferable. To register for and use MyLab or Mastering, you may also need a Course ID, which your instructor will provide.

Used books, rentals, and purchases made outside of Pearson
If purchasing or renting from companies other than Pearson, the access codes for the Mastering platform may not be included, may be incorrect, or may be previously redeemed. Check with the seller before completing your purchase.

Eric Chaisson holds a Doctorate in Astrophysics from Harvard University, where he spent 10 years on the faculty of Arts and Sciences. For more than two decades thereafter, he served on the senior science staff at the Space Telescope Science Institute and held various professorships at Johns Hopkins and Tufts universities. He is now back at Harvard, where he teaches and conducts research at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. Eric has written 12 books on astronomy and has published nearly 200 scientific papers in professional journals.

Steve McMillan holds a Bachelor’s and Master’s Degree in Mathematics from Cambridge University and a Doctorate in Astronomy from Harvard University. He held postdoctoral positions at the University of Illinois and Northwestern University, where he continued his research in theoretical astrophysics, star clusters, and high-performance computing. Steve is currently Distinguished Professor of Physics at Drexel University and a frequent visiting researcher at Princeton’s Institute for Advanced Study and Leiden University. He has published more than 100 articles and scientific papers in professional journals. 

Emily L. Rice, College of Staten Island, City University of New York
Emily holds bachelor’s degrees in physics and astronomy and German from the University of Pittsburgh and a master’s degree and doctorate in astronomy and astrophysics from UCLA. After completing her Ph.D. she held a postdoctoral position at the American Museum of Natural History, where she is still a resident research associate. Emily is currently Assistant Professor at the College of Staten Island and doctoral faculty in physics at the Graduate Center, both part of the City University of New York. In addition to her research on low-mass stars, brown dwarfs, and exoplanets as co-PI of the Brown Dwarfs in New York City (BDNYC) group, she is the co-author of Astronomy Labs: A Concept Oriented Approach and co-founder of the astronomy fashion blog STARtorialist.

I. ASTRONOMY AND THE UNIVERSE

1. Charting the Heavens: The Foundations of Astronomy

2. The Copernican Revolution: The Birth of Modern Science

3. Radiation: Information from the Cosmos

4. Spectroscopy: The Inner Workings of Atoms

5. Telescopes: The Tools of Astronomy

II. OUR PLANETARY SYSTEM

6. The Solar System: An Introduction to Comparative Planetology

7. Earth: Our Home in Space

8. The Moon and Mercury: Scorched and Battered Worlds

9. Venus: Earth’s Sister Planet

10. Mars: A Near Miss for Life?

11. Jupiter: Giant of the Solar System

12. Saturn: Spectacular Rings and Mysterious Moons

13. Uranus and Neptune: The Outer Worlds of the Solar System

14. Solar System Debris: Keys to Our Origin

15. The Formation of Planetary Systems: The Solar System and Beyond

III. STARS AND STELLAR EVOLUTION

16. The Sun: Our Parent Star

17. The Stars: Giants, Dwarfs, and the Main Sequence

18. The Interstellar Medium: Gas and Dust among the Stars

19. Star Formation: A Traumatic Birth

20. Stellar Evolution: The Life and Death of a Star

21. Stellar Explosions: Novae, Supernovae, and the Formation of the Elements

22. Neutron Stars and Black Holes: Strange States of Matter

IV. GALAXIES AND COSMOLOGY

23. The Milky Way Galaxy: A Spiral in Space

24. Galaxies: Building Blocks of the Universe

25. Galaxies and Dark Matter: The Large-Scale Structure of the Cosmos

26. Cosmology: The Big Bang and the Fate of the Universe

27. The Early Universe: Toward the Beginning of Time 

28. Life in the Universe: Are We Alone?

The New copy of this book will include any supplemental materials advertised. Please check the title of the book to determine if it should include any access cards, study guides, lab manuals, CDs, etc.

The Used, Rental and eBook copies of this book are not guaranteed to include any supplemental materials. Typically, only the book itself is included. This is true even if the title states it includes any access cards, study guides, lab manuals, CDs, etc.