An Introduction to Modern Astrophysics

A comprehensive and engaging textbook, covering the entire astrophysics curriculum in one volume.

Preface; Part I. The Tools of Astronomy: 1. The celestial sphere; 2. Celestial mechanics; 3. The continuous spectrum of light; 4. The theory of special relativity; 5. The interaction of light and matter; 6. Telescopes; Part II. The Nature of Stars: 7. Binary systems and stellar parameters; 8. The classification of stellar spectra; 9. Stellar atmospheres; 10. The interiors of stars; 11. The Sun; 12. The interstellar medium and star formation; 13. Main sequence and post-main-sequence stellar evolution; 14. Stellar pulsation; 15. The fate of massive stars; 16. The degenerate remnants of stars; 17. General relativity and black holes; 18. Close binary star systems; Part III. The Solar System: 19. Physical processes in the solar system; 20. The terrestrial planets; 21. The realms of the giant planets; 22. Minor bodies of the solar system; 23. Formation of planetary systems; Part IV. Galaxies and the Universe: 24. The Milky Way Galaxy; 25. The nature of galaxies; 26. Galactic evolution; 27. The structure of the Universe; 28. Active galaxies; 29. Cosmology; 30. The early Universe; Appendix A. Astronomical and physical constants; Appendix B. Unit conversions; Appendix C. Solar system data; Appendix D. The constellations; Appendix E. The brightest stars; Appendix F. The nearest stars; Appendix G. Stellar data; Appendix H. The Messier catalog; Appendix I. Constants, a programming module; Appendix J. Orbit, a planetary orbit code; Appendix K. TwoStars, a binary star code; Appendix L. StatStar, a stellar structure code; Appendix M. Galaxy, a tidal interaction code; Appendix N. WMAP Data; Suggested reading; Index.