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Nature » The Solar System & Space

Most Recommended Books

Intelligent Life in the Universe by Carl Sagan & Iosif Shklovsky

“This is the first astrobiology book.”

Tullis Onstott, Environmentalist

Read more

Browse book recommendations:

Nature

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  • The Solar System & Space

The size and complexity of the solar system are mind-boggling to astrophysicists, let alone the average layperson, but here, experts recommend books that will help you try to get to grips with space and the solar system—the bookworm’s guide to the galaxy, rather than the hitchhiker’s (although some of our experts do recommend Douglas Adams, too.)

Astronomer Philip Plait chooses his best books on the wonders of the universe, and explains the difference between an astronomer and an astrophysicist. Stuart Clark chooses his best books on astronomers, talking about how astronomers think about unexplained phenomena, such as the way in which all the galaxies in the universe seem to be rotating faster than we would expect them to. Sean M Carroll, a theoretical physicist at Caltech chooses his best books on cosmology, as does David Goldburg, a theoretical cosmologist at Drexel University in Philadelphia.

Author and science journalist Andrew Chaikin chooses his best books on space exploration. Caroline Smith chooses her best books on meteorites, Richard Cohen his best on the sun and Pedro G Ferreira discusses the universe. James Kasting talks about life beyond the Earth and Princeton Professor of Geosciences Tullis Onstott talks about life below the surface of the Earth —particularly what life below Earth's surface might be able to tell us about life beyond the Earth.

For our best books on the moon landings click here.

    The best books on Life Below the Surface of the Earth, recommended by Tullis Onstott

  • Read
    The best books on Life Below the Surface of the Earth - Journey to the Centre of the Earth by Jules Verne

    1

    Journey to the Centre of the Earth
    by Jules Verne

  • Read
    The best books on Life Below the Surface of the Earth - Intelligent Life in the Universe by Carl Sagan & Iosif Shklovsky

    2

    Intelligent Life in the Universe
    by Carl Sagan & Iosif Shklovsky

  • Read
    The best books on Life Below the Surface of the Earth - The Universe Below by William Broad

    3

    The Universe Below
    by William Broad

  • Read
    The best books on Life Below the Surface of the Earth - A Traveler's Guide to Mars by William Hartmann

    4

    A Traveler's Guide to Mars
    by William Hartmann

  • Read
    The best books on Life Below the Surface of the Earth - The Living Cosmos by Chris Impey

    5

    The Living Cosmos
    by Chris Impey

The best books on Life Below the Surface of the Earth, recommended by Tullis Onstott

The ‘subterranaut’ describes how the discovery of ancient bacteria miles beneath the Earth’s surface opens the possibility of finding life on Mars. He picks five books that show how our knowledge of life deep in this planet could lead us to discover it elsewhere.

    The best books on Cosmology, recommended by David Goldberg

  • Read
    The best books on Cosmology - A Brief History of Time by Stephen Hawking

    1

    A Brief History of Time
    by Stephen Hawking

  • Read
    The best books on Cosmology - The First 3 Minutes by Steven Weinberg

    2

    The First 3 Minutes
    by Steven Weinberg

  • Read
    The best books on Cosmology - The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams

    3

    The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy
    by Douglas Adams

  • Read
    The best books on Cosmology - A Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson

    4

    A Short History of Nearly Everything
    by Bill Bryson

  • Read
    The best books on Cosmology - Time Travel in Einstein's Universe by Richard Gott

    5

    Time Travel in Einstein's Universe
    by Richard Gott

The best books on Cosmology, recommended by David Goldberg

David Goldberg, professor of physics at Drexel University, recommends the best books to start learning about cosmology. He explains his choices to high school student, Eric Bolton.

    Books on the Wonders of The Universe, recommended by Philip Plait

  • Read
    Books on the Wonders of The Universe - Bang! by Brian May, Patrick Moore, and Chris Lintott

    1

    Bang!
    by Brian May, Patrick Moore, and Chris Lintott

  • Read
    Books on the Wonders of The Universe - How I Killed Pluto and Why It Had It Coming by Mike Brown

    2

    How I Killed Pluto and Why It Had It Coming
    by Mike Brown

  • Read
    Books on the Wonders of The Universe - A Man on the Moon by Andrew Chaikin

    3

    A Man on the Moon
    by Andrew Chaikin

  • Read
    Books on the Wonders of The Universe - Why Does E=mc2? by Brian Cox and Jeff Forshaw

    4

    Why Does E=mc2?
    by Brian Cox and Jeff Forshaw

  • Read
    Books on the Wonders of The Universe - The Demon-Haunted World by Carl Sagan

    5

    The Demon-Haunted World
    by Carl Sagan

Books on the Wonders of The Universe, recommended by Philip Plait

Philip Plait urges us to remember that “science isn’t an encyclopedia of facts to memorise. It’s alive.” The astronomer and author of the acclaimed Bad Astronomy blog discusses books that can’t help but light the fire of interest in all things astronomical. He looks at how we can date the age of the universe, the danger of solar flares, and why Pluto is no longer classed as a planet.

    The best books on Astronomers, recommended by Stuart Clark

  • Read
    The best books on Astronomers - The Edge of Physics by Anil Ananthaswamy

    1

    The Edge of Physics
    by Anil Ananthaswamy

  • Read
    The best books on Astronomers - Galileo’s Daughter by Dava Sobel

    2

    Galileo’s Daughter
    by Dava Sobel

  • Read
    The best books on Astronomers - Lonely Hearts of the Cosmos by Dennis Overbye

    3

    Lonely Hearts of the Cosmos
    by Dennis Overbye

  • Read
    The best books on Astronomers - Afterglow of Creation by Marcus Chown

    4

    Afterglow of Creation
    by Marcus Chown

  • Read
    The best books on Astronomers - The Northern Lights by Lucy Jago

    5

    The Northern Lights
    by Lucy Jago

The best books on Astronomers, recommended by Stuart Clark

Can’t tell your nebula from your black hole? The New Scientist writer introduces us to some of the wonders of the universe and tells the stories of astronomers who discovered them

    The best books on Cosmology, recommended by Sean M Carroll

  • Read
    The best books on Cosmology - The Fabric of the Cosmos by Brian Greene

    1

    The Fabric of the Cosmos
    by Brian Greene

  • Read
    The best books on Cosmology - The Inflationary Universe by Alan Guth

    2

    The Inflationary Universe
    by Alan Guth

  • Read
    The best books on Cosmology - Einstein’s Telescope by Evalyn Gates

    3

    Einstein’s Telescope
    by Evalyn Gates

  • Read
    The best books on Cosmology - Black Holes and Time Warps by Kip S Thorne

    4

    Black Holes and Time Warps
    by Kip S Thorne

  • Read
    The best books on Cosmology - The Black Hole War by Leonard Susskind

    5

    The Black Hole War
    by Leonard Susskind

The best books on Cosmology, recommended by Sean M Carroll

Theoretical cosmologist Sean Carroll recommends five books about space, time and the universe that even the science-shy can understand and enjoy

    The best books on Space Exploration, recommended by Andrew Chaikin

  • Read
    The best books on Space Exploration - Carrying the Fire by Michael Collins

    1

    Carrying the Fire
    by Michael Collins

  • Read
    The best books on Space Exploration - Apollo: the Race to the Moon by Catherine Bly Cox & Charles Murray

    2

    Apollo: the Race to the Moon
    by Catherine Bly Cox & Charles Murray

  • Read
    The best books on Space Exploration - Beyond by Michael Benson

    3

    Beyond
    by Michael Benson

  • Read
    The best books on Space Exploration - The Red Limit by Timothy Ferris

    4

    The Red Limit
    by Timothy Ferris

  • Read
    The best books on Space Exploration - Mars and the Mind of Man by Arthur C Clarke, Bruce Murray, Carl Sagan, Ray Bradbury & Walter Sullivan

    5

    Mars and the Mind of Man
    by Arthur C Clarke, Bruce Murray, Carl Sagan, Ray Bradbury & Walter Sullivan

The best books on Space Exploration, recommended by Andrew Chaikin

Space historian Andrew Chaikin tells us about five books that capture the thrill and achievement of our venturing into the great beyond. He picks the best books on space exploration.

    The best books on Meteorites, recommended by Caroline Smith

  • Read
    The best books on Meteorites - Meteorites by Robert Hutchison

    1

    Meteorites
    by Robert Hutchison

  • Read
    The best books on Meteorites - Solar System Evolution, A New Perspective by Stuart Ross Taylor

    2

    Solar System Evolution, A New Perspective
    by Stuart Ross Taylor

  • Read
    The best books on Meteorites - Out of the Sky by H H Nininger (out of print)

    3

    Out of the Sky
    by H H Nininger (out of print)

  • Read
    The best books on Meteorites - Meteorites by Alex Bevan and John de Laeter

    4

    Meteorites
    by Alex Bevan and John de Laeter

  • Read
    The best books on Meteorites - Meteorites by Caroline Smith & Caroline Smith, Sara Russell and Gretchen Benedix

    5

    Meteorites
    by Caroline Smith & Caroline Smith, Sara Russell and Gretchen Benedix

The best books on Meteorites, recommended by Caroline Smith

One of the Natural History Museum’s experts in meteoritics, Dr Caroline Smith says the meteorites that land on earth predate our planet by about 150 million years and it’s not surprising that they land here

    The best books on The Sun, recommended by Richard Cohen

  • Read
    The best books on The Sun - Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov

    1

    Lolita
    by Vladimir Nabokov

  • Read
    The best books on The Sun - The Sleepwalkers by Arthur Koestler

    2

    The Sleepwalkers
    by Arthur Koestler

  • Read
    The best books on The Sun - Memories, Dreams, Reflections by Carl Jung

    3

    Memories, Dreams, Reflections
    by Carl Jung

  • Read
    The best books on The Sun - Coming of Age in the Milky Way by Timothy Ferris (Anchor, 1989)

    4

    Coming of Age in the Milky Way
    by Timothy Ferris (Anchor, 1989)

  • Read
    The best books on The Sun - Eating the Sun by Oliver Morton

    5

    Eating the Sun
    by Oliver Morton

The best books on The Sun, recommended by Richard Cohen

It makes us feel sexy, it makes us feel healthy and it can even make us feel more inspired. No wonder we’re in thrall to the power of the sun, says Richard Cohen

    The best books on The Universe, recommended by Pedro G Ferreira

  • Read
    The best books on The Universe - Empire of the Stars by Arthur I Miller

    1

    Empire of the Stars
    by Arthur I Miller

  • Read
    The best books on The Universe - Electric Universe by David Bodanis

    2

    Electric Universe
    by David Bodanis

  • Read
    The best books on The Universe - The Strangest Man by Graham Farmelo

    3

    The Strangest Man
    by Graham Farmelo

  • Read
    The best books on The Universe - Chaos by James Gleick

    4

    Chaos
    by James Gleick

  • Read
    The best books on The Universe - Complexity by M Mitchell Waldrop

    5

    Complexity
    by M Mitchell Waldrop

The best books on The Universe, recommended by Pedro G Ferreira

The Professor of Astro-Physics at Oxford University selects five seminal books on the workings of the universe. Explains that to appreciate the true beauty of science is to understand its simplicity and universality

    The best books on Life Beyond Earth, recommended by James Kasting

  • Read
    The best books on Life Beyond Earth - Rare Earth by Peter Ward and Don Brownlee

    1

    Rare Earth
    by Peter Ward and Don Brownlee

  • Read
    The best books on Life Beyond Earth - Distant Wanderers by Bruce Dorminey

    2

    Distant Wanderers
    by Bruce Dorminey

  • Read
    The best books on Life Beyond Earth - The Ages of Gaia by James Lovelocke

    3

    The Ages of Gaia
    by James Lovelocke

  • Read
    The best books on Life Beyond Earth - The Crowded Universe by Alan Boss

    4

    The Crowded Universe
    by Alan Boss

  • Read
    The best books on Life Beyond Earth - Intelligent Life in the Universe by Carl Sagan & Iosif Shklovsky

    5

    Intelligent Life in the Universe
    by Carl Sagan & Iosif Shklovsky

The best books on Life Beyond Earth, recommended by James Kasting

Geoscience professor and NASA adviser James Kasting talks us through the scientific possibilities for life beyond earth. He recommends books by both ‘optimists. and ‘pessimists.’

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