It’s ONLY Rocket Science: An Introduction in Plain English (Astronomers’ Universe) 2008th Edition by Lucy Rogers (PDF)

Description

Most amateur astronomers – and many of those with similar interests but who are not currently practising observers – have only a sketchy understanding of space flight. This book provides an introduction to its mechanics. The beauty of this book, written by an engineer who is also an accomplished science writer, is that it covers the subject comprehensively, and yet is almost entirely descriptive and non-mathematical. It deals with all aspects of space flight, from how to leave the Earth (including the design of the rocket, mission planning, navigation and communication), to life in space and the effects of weightlessness. The book also includes sections describing how an amateur can track satellites and understand their orbital parameters.

User’s Reviews

Reviews from Amazon users which were colected at the time this book was published on the website:

⭐This book was very enjoyable. What I liked most about this book was the ability to explain difficult concepts in an understandable way. I learned so much not only on rockets, but our solar system and the universe itself. I would recommend this book to future engineers, or anyone eager to learn about rockets and space. Very intriguing and intellectually engaging.

⭐I was thinking a rocket science book would be full of mathematics and equations. This book has none. So if you were looking for a book to help you work through astrodynamic equations look somewhere else, of course that tells you nothing about the book itself…The book claims to be in ‘Plain English’ and in that it delivers. It explains a lot about the history, challenges, and solutions of space exploration and does so in a concise easy to understand way and I learned quite a bit that I probably wouldn’t have learned from a book focusing on equations. However, the information is presented in a rather jumbled format, it seems that some information is in the wrong place or laid out in the wrong order, and in certain instances I wonder if what the author is saying is actual space industry standards or if it just her way of explaining things (e.g. the steps to get a rocket from launch pad to orbit and the seven basic elements of all space missions). There are also very few pictures or tables to reference, which could help people visualize concepts in a book like this.Now, don’t get me wrong, I’m very glad I read this book and I’m grateful for the information inside, I just wish it were a bit more polished.

⭐I used this as the main text for a homeschool science course for my son. The content is meaty and challenging but presented in a very accessible way. I supplemented it with Kerbal Space Program (an orbital mechanics simulator disguised as a video game) and lots of news articles about NASA, SpaceX, and Blue Origin. Our homeschool evaluator was impressed with the content and his understanding of it. Still one of his favorite science years. (Took the course in middle school, but certainly high school level or beyond).

⭐It’s a great read with a good means of explaining the basic physics of rockets that hasn’t changed much over that last couple centuries. However, the real world examples could be updated because a lot has changed in the industry over the last decade.

⭐This book is great for anyone who is not an engineer or non-technical. The book describes the concepts in simplified ways and provides analogies to concepts in everyday life. Recommended for anyone wanting to get a high level understanding of rocket science concepts.

⭐Dr. Rogers clearly knows her stuff, but you’ll have a hard time learning it from her because the book is presented in prose format rather than employing any instructional design techniques — no bullets, no bolding of key terms, and the graphics are very pixellated. So you essentially have, save for an occasional table or graphic, a sea of text without much visual relief. There is a glossary in the back as well as an index; I will give her credit for that. Plus, she is from the UK, so American readers will get distracted a bit by the British spellings and phrasing/usage. I am a technical writer who wants to learn more about the aerospace field, but I’ve had this book about a year now, am not quite halfway through it, and have no motivation to pick it up to finish it. There is good information here, but I just don’t have the energy to force myself through that much highlighting…

⭐The book is plainly written, but much of the information and context discussion is dated. There is far too much emphasis, for example, on points which are now completely irrelevant. My intention was to use this book as an ancillary study source for my physics and rocketry students. The introductory information on basic orbital mechanics is well enough, but I would have appreciated something a bit more in-depth. The sections dealing with future technologies are extremely limited and offer no real insight into the directions that breakthrough physics could muster for space travel. Overall: Not bad, but there are better books elsewhere.

⭐I haven’t finished reading this yet, but the first third that I have gotten through has been really helpful. I’m new to a lot of what goes into space flight but not the physics and this book has been very thorough and informative.

⭐This is an excellent ground-up explanation of space flight and the issues associated with flying to the moon and back. The author assumes no knowledge and proceeds to explain everything in great detail step-by-step. I have a physics degree and was constantly delighted and never felt patronised. It’s jaw dropping of course , like any book that recounts the challenges of space flight. The free sample is indicative. Recommended.

⭐My husband read this because he likes the subject and says that it was written at the right level for him. It may be challenging for someone who does not have a math/science/engineering background.

⭐OK / Reasonably ok – Rather superficial / OK for the layman…

⭐Love it.

⭐A fascinating book written in a style that an interested layman can understand. Despite having lived through, and been interested in, all the space exploration since Sputnik, I hadn’t appreciated all that is involved.Dr Rogers is to be congratulated for covering a complex topic in a straightforward way without recourse to too much and hard-to-understand science. Indeed I occasionally found the book prompted further questions in my mind which I then enjoyed researching.The author also covered relevant astronomy topics which I found very useful. One day perhaps, humans will set foot on another planet in the solar system and some of the problems that such a mission would have to face are covered well.Clearly the author has a passion for space and astronomy, as well as the ability to put things over in an essentially simply way.All in all I’d can thoroughly recommend the book.

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