Reviews
Journey from the Center of the Sunis written with the experience, perspective, and insight of one who has spent decades in solar physics. . . . Zirker sets out to deal with it all, and does an admirable job. He fits the many pieces together in an eminently satisfying manner. . . . At such a reasonable price,Journey from the Center of the Sunshould be purchased and read by anyone with an interest in solar astrophysics., "The book's title amounts to an outline. But before jumping in, Zirker gives readers a basic overview of the Sun's structure to frame the rest. This is followed by a summary of major unsolved solar problems, many of them longstanding. . . . Then it's down to the solar engine room: the core, where thermonuclear reactions make everything go. Zirker provides a detailed description of hoe the Sun works. At times he will tell about unfamiliar processes, such as quantum tunneling as protons collide, but his explanations are clear."-- Robert Burnham, Sky & Telescope, The book's title amounts to an outline. But before jumping in, Zirker gives readers a basic overview of the Sun's structure to frame the rest. This is followed by a summary of major unsolved solar problems, many of them longstanding. . . . Then it's down to the solar engine room: the core, where thermonuclear reactions make everything go. Zirker provides a detailed description of hoe the Sun works. At times he will tell about unfamiliar processes, such as quantum tunneling as protons collide, but his explanations are clear. ---Robert Burnham, Sky & Telescope, "[Zirker's] informal style keeps things moving along swiftly, while balancing the latest findings with background on the pioneers of the field. He shows how solar research has grown from inspired speculation into a flourishing science. A thorough introduction."-- Ben Longstaff, New Scientist, "The book's title amounts to an outline. But before jumping in, Zirker gives readers a basic overview of the Sun's structure to frame the rest. This is followed by a summary of major unsolved solar problems, many of them longstanding. . . . Then it's down to the solar engine room: the core, where thermonuclear reactions make everything go. Zirker provides a detailed description of hoe the Sun works. At times he will tell about unfamiliar processes, such as quantum tunneling as protons collide, but his explanations are clear." --Robert Burnham, Sky & Telescope, The book's title amounts to an outline. But before jumping in, Zirker gives readers a basic overview of the Sun's structure to frame the rest. This is followed by a summary of major unsolved solar problems, many of them longstanding. . . . Then it's down to the solar engine room: the core, where thermonuclear reactions make everything go. Zirker provides a detailed description of hoe the Sun works. At times he will tell about unfamiliar processes, such as quantum tunneling as protons collide, but his explanations are clear., "[Zirker's] informal style keeps things moving along swiftly, while balancing the latest findings with background on the pioneers of the field. He shows how solar research has grown from inspired speculation into a flourishing science. A thorough introduction." --Ben Longstaff, New Scientist, [Zirker's] informal style keeps things moving along swiftly, while balancing the latest findings with background on the pioneers of the field. He shows how solar research has grown from inspired speculation into a flourishing science. A thorough introduction. ---Ben Longstaff, New Scientist, [Zirker's] informal style keeps things moving along swiftly, while balancing the latest findings with background on the pioneers of the field. He shows how solar research has grown from inspired speculation into a flourishing science. A thorough introduction., "This is a well conceived book, written by an experienced researcher and writer who has a gift for concise explanation and clear imagery. It is also timely. Zirker presents the results of modern solar physics in a form appealing to the intelligent lay reader just as we are going through solar maximum. His book may become the standard popular reference on the sun for the next decade." --Larry Marschall, author of Supernova Story, " Journey from the Center of the Sun is written with the experience, perspective, and insight of one who has spent decades in solar physics. . . . Zirker sets out to deal with it all, and does an admirable job. He fits the many pieces together in an eminently satisfying manner. . . . At such a reasonable price, Journey from the Center of the Sun should be purchased and read by anyone with an interest in solar astrophysics."-- Loren W. Acton, Physics Today, "This book surveys solar astronomy, treating all parts of the sun from the inside out. It highlights how much interesting research is going on about the sun and is illustrated with a wide variety of examples." --Jay Pasachoff, Williams College, " Journey from the Center of the Sun is written with the experience, perspective, and insight of one who has spent decades in solar physics. . . . Zirker sets out to deal with it all, and does an admirable job. He fits the many pieces together in an eminently satisfying manner. . . . At such a reasonable price, Journey from the Center of the Sun should be purchased and read by anyone with an interest in solar astrophysics." --Loren W. Acton, Physics Today, Journey from the Center of the Sun is written with the experience, perspective, and insight of one who has spent decades in solar physics. . . . Zirker sets out to deal with it all, and does an admirable job. He fits the many pieces together in an eminently satisfying manner. . . . At such a reasonable price, Journey from the Center of the Sun should be purchased and read by anyone with an interest in solar astrophysics. ---Loren W. Acton, Physics Today