Book recommendations for books about space science?

[AuroraBorealis]

Do you have book recommendations for books about space science and astronomy? I don't mean astronomy like a guide on how to set up your telescope and map out the stars ( I found a lot of those online). I mean more like books that cover everything there is in space, like constellations, but also details on planets, galaxies (both our home galaxy as well as others), asteroids, space travel, black holes, physical/chemical phenomenons like northern/southern lights, space warp, all that stuff. Also, I'm looking for something like a scientific textbook, not something that's more "story-like", like e.g. the books written by Stephen Hawking (already got those), but like a book you can use to actually study those things. I'm an amateur but fairly secure in physics/chemistry, so it would be welcome to go more into scientific details. I'm also a fan of pictures, so it would be great if it wasn't only text but also photos, tables, drawings, diagrams, and so on.

Thank you so much for your recommendations!

 

[Outdated]

I'm not so sure about books so much these days but perhaps this might fill a few gaps for you:

Basics | Universe – NASA Universe Exploration

The origin, evolution, and nature of the universe have fascinated and confounded humankind for centuries. Here is the history of the universe according to cosmologists’ current theories.

universe.nasa.gov

 

[blue_bird]

Maybe this helps...
(project Gutenberg however only has old books)

Books: astronomy (sorted by popularity)

 

[Richelle-H]

Some time ago, I was at a bookstore for something completely different, but the author was less than accommodating, so that did not work for me. But as I was in a bookstore and did not want to waste the trip I did a bit of browsing before leaving. I came across a large coffee table size book that attracted me immediately for two reasons. The first was that it was a hardcover astronomy book and one of the authors names leaped off the dust jacket. Picking it up, I discovered it had been autographed by said author, so it was an immediate purchase, even though it was somewhat pricey. Said author was Sir Brian May. He and his two co-authors produced a book that was filled with many photographs and illustrations.

I am not sure it is exactly what you are looking for, but I can recommend it for the graphics as well as the text. You might check out Bang: A Complete History of the Universe. It is a stunning book for the pictures alone.

 

[Dagan]

Anything by Neil degrasse Tyson. He's the best at not only simplifying things, but he's tops to making it fun to learn. His passion comes through in every aspect of science he ever talks about. His podcast, Startalk is all over youtube, as well.

 

[Ronald Zeeman]

Some time ago, I was at a bookstore for something completely different, but the author was less than accommodating, so that did not work for me. But as I was in a bookstore and did not want to waste the trip I did a bit of browsing before leaving. I came across a large coffee table size book that attracted me immediately for two reasons. The first was that it was a hardcover astronomy book and one of the authors names leaped off the dust jacket. Picking it up, I discovered it had been autographed by said author, so it was an immediate purchase, even though it was somewhat pricey. Said author was Sir Brian May. He and his two co-authors produced a book that was filled with many photographs and illustrations.

I am not sure it is exactly what you are looking for, but I can recommend it for the graphics as well as the text. You might check out Bang: A Complete History of the Universe. It is a stunning book for the pictures alone.

Brian May has a Phd in Astronomy on top of being the guitar player for Queen.

 

[Ronald Zeeman]

Powers of Ten by Philip and Phylis Morrison

 

[TBRS1]

Michio Kaku written many good books, been on many science programs, and seems to be well regarded.

I don't have the background to really evaluate, but I like their writing.

 

[AuAL]

Some of the really exciting stuff probably hasn’t made its way out of the scientific literature into books yet. The Big Ring was discovered last year (I think) and the Great Arc in 2021. Both these structures contradict the cosmological principle, so either the standard model is incomplete, or we need something new.

(Both these structures were discovered by the same PhD student, Alexia Lopez.
c.f. Lopez, A. M., Clowes, R. G., & Williger, G. M. (2022). A giant arc on the sky. Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, 516(2), 1557-1572.
And also:
Aluri, P.K., Cea, P., Chingangbam, P., Chu, M.C., Clowes, R.G., Hutsemékers, D., Kochappan, J.P., Lopez, A.M., Liu, L., Martens, N.C. and Martins, C.J.A.P., 2023. Is the observable Universe consistent with the cosmological principle?. Classical and Quantum Gravity, 40(9), p.094001.)

 

[Ronald Zeeman]

Richard Feynman's autobiography is a must read.

 

[vergil96]

All books by Stephen Hawking