Astronomy and the Climate Crisis

It has been said that music and astronomy go hand in hand. Antony Cooke's passion for both fields was clear very early in his life, but music ultimately would claim his career. A cellist of international renown, Cooke has been one of the leading players in the Hollywood recording industry for many years, having been Associate Professor of Cello at Northwestern University in Chicago until 1983. He is a U.S. citizen but was born in Australia and educated in London, receiving numerous prizes and awards, including the Gold Medal at the London Music Festival. The dual nature of Cooke's interests continued, astronomy remaining the counterbalance in his life. Always looking for ways to improve his existence at the eyepiece, he has constructed many telescopes over the years, with increasing sizes being the hallmark of his (often-quirky) designs. He has published four books for Springer, Visual Astronomy in the Suburbs (2003), Visual Astronomy Under Dark Skies (2005), Make Time for the Stars (2009) and recently, Dark Nebulae, Dark Lanes and Dust Belts (2012).

• Preface.- Chapter 1: The Astronomical Connection.- Chapter 2: The Physics of a Crisis.- Chapter 3: Climate and Weather.- Chapter 4: The Physics of a Crisis.- Chapter 5: Short-Term Climate Variation.- Chapter 6: Gravitational Interactions of the Solar System.- Chapter 7: Understanding the Larger Solar Cycles.- Chapter 8: Climate Models.- Chapter 9: Interpretations of the Data.- Chapter 10: Global Warming on Other Worlds.- Chapter 11: Ice Ages and Long-Term Cycles.- Chapter 12: Cosmic Crisis.- Index.

From the reviews: "This book thoroughly covers the ways in which global warming has been studied and conclusions drawn. ... The book reveals the great amount of research conducted on climate change and its causes, and one needs some exposure to astronomy to gain an understanding of much of it. Overall, a valuable addition to the literature; useful for libraries serving schools at the graduate level of study. Summing Up: Recommended. Graduate students and above." (A. R. Upgren, Choice, Vol. 50 (8), April, 2013)