Forty Ways to Know a Star

Explore the fascinating facts and visual wonder of stars in this easy-to-read and beautifully illustrated guide from astrophysicist and popular science blogger Dr. Jillian Scudder.

Stars, the building blocks of the universe, are simply luminous spheres of plasma held together by gravity, but there are many kinds and many remarkable examples. Astoundingly, there are at least 100 billion stars in our galaxy and an estimated two trillion galaxies in our visible universe. Understanding the birth, life, and death of stars is key to a knowledge of astronomy.

40 Ways to Know a Star offers forty short essays that explore everything from the Milky Way to planetary nebulae, from how a star is born to the colors of stars, each enhanced by a color illustration or graphic image. Dr. Scudder, whose popular Astroquizzical blog features an engaging "ask an astronomer" format, writes in a way that makes complex physics accessible. Magnificent imagery of the heavens, including ten color plates featuring NASA photographs, makes this space book as enticing as it is informative.

Dr. Jillian Scudder is an astrophysicist and Associate Professor of Physics at Oberlin College, Ohio. She has been writing about astronomy for a general audience since 2013, when she began the blog Astroquizzical, answering reader queries about the Universe. Her work has been published in Nautilus, Forbes, and The Conversation. Her published books include Astroquizzical (MIT Press, 2022) and The Milky Way Smells of Rum and Raspberries (Icon Books, 2023).