Book Review: World Book Encyclopedia of Science: Space

 

This is one of the nine volumes of the World Book Encyclopedia of Science, first published in 2014 and updated in 2019. I have the 2019 version of the set. The volume on space is just under 250 pages. The entries include things such as the history of some famous constellations and stars, the more famous deep-sky objects, and all the planets. It also includes biographies of famous scientists who contributed to the advancement of Astronomy and Astrophysics, as well as some of the most famous Astronauts throughout history. Everything is in alphabetical order, with some entries getting 1-2 paragraphs of write-up, and others receiving multiple pages. 

If you are a fan of Astronomy and have read many books on the subject, you will probably know a lot of the information contained in this volume. It does, however, include information on some of the more recent NASA missions, such as the New Horizons mission to Pluto, which some people may not be as familiar with. And, while it is not overly technical, it does contain some technical information and includes information that you may not know, even if you have read several space-related books. It also includes a couple of how-to projects, such as how to make a mobile of the solar system, how to make a home-made planetarium that you can project using a flashlight, etc. It is written in a way that kids about 10 years old and up can understand it, but it can still be informative for adults. The set is out of print now, but if you can find a copy, it is worth reading.