Sky Atlases

This is a list of sky atlases (originally from Mark Huss' Books 101 column).

Tirion, Wil, Bright Star Atlas, 2nd edition,
Richmond, VA, 2000: Willmann-Bell.

"This 10 map atlas of the night sky is drawn by Wil Tirion and us based upon the Hipparcos and Tycho Catalogs with a stellar limiting magnitude of 6.5. Opposite each full page map Brian Skiff of the Lowell Observatory has prepared a tabular listing of interesting objects visible in binoculars or small telescopes. These include galaxies, open clusters, diffuse nebulae, bright nebulae, planetary nebulae, double stars, and variable stars. Atlas includes a set of seasonal star maps to help orient the user to the night sky throughout practically the entire populated world. Objects in Skiff's catalog are also listed in cross referenced tables." Handy lightweight atlas to keep in the car with a pair of binos.

Tirion, Wil, The Cambridge Star Atlas, 2nd edition, (out of print)
Cambridge, MA, 1996: Cambridge University Press.

This 20-chart atlas "covers the entire sky, both northern and southern latitudes, in an attractive format that is suitable for beginners and experienced astronomical observers. There is a series of monthly sky charts, followed by an atlas of the whole sky, arranged in 20 overlapping charts. Each chart shows stars down to magnitude 6.5, together with about 900 non-stellar objects, such as clusters and galaxies, which can be seen with binoculars or a small telescope. There is a comprehensive map of the Moon's surface, showing craters and other named features."

Ridpath, Ian, ed., Norton's Star Atlas, 20th ed.,
Upper Saddle River, NJ, 2003 : Pi Press.

This is the 20th edition of a classic, first published in 1910 to coincide with an appearance of Halley's comet. More than an atlas, this book has four chapters of intoductory astronomy: Position and Time, Practical Astronomy, The Solar System, and Stars, Nebulae and Galaxies. The Moon section has four detailed maps with facing pages full of interesting craters and other lunar features. There are also sixteen sky maps, each with a corresponding two pages of interesting double stars, variable stars, and deep space objects. This book should be on every amateur astronomer's bookshelf.

Dickenson, Terrence, Victor Costanzo, and Glenn F. Chapel,
Edmund Mag 6 Star Atlas,
Barrington, NJ, 19??: Edmund Scientific

This "is a practical sky guide, covering all aspects of amateur astronomy, specifically designed for both indoor and outdoor use. This comprehensive book contains detailed data on more than 1,000 celestial objects including multiple stars, variable stars, nebulea and galaxies. [Twelve] detailed star charts accurately identify all stars to magnitude 6.2 and hundreds of fainter objects." This is a good beginner's atlas, and is great for binocular observing.

Tirion, Wil and Roger Sinott, Sky Atlas 2000.0, 2nd ed.,
Cambridge, MA, 1999: Sky Publishing
Unlaminated Editions Laminated Editions

This is the classic "medium density" star atlas, and is at just the right scale and resolution for a finderscope or binoculars. "Each version of Sky Atlas 2000.0 contains 26 charts covering the whole sky and showing 81,312 single, multiple, and variable stars of magnitude 8.5 and brighter and 2,700 deep-sky objects. Includes close-up charts of such areas as the celestial poles and the Virgo-Coma galaxy region, as well as an acetate coordinate-grid overlay for determining accurate positions."

Tirion, Wil, George Lovi and Barry Rappaport, Uranometria 2000.00, 2nd edition,
Richmond, VA, 2001: Willmann-Bell.

This is the most comprehensive and detailed paper atlas currently available, and is one that the hard core amateur astronomers use. The new version is much easier to use and is laid out in a more sensible format, e.g., the left and right pages of each chart form one continuous map. "More than 280,000 stars and over 30,000 deep sky non-stellar objects are located with a degree of accuracy heretofore unavailable in one resource. Encyclopedic in nature, with beautifully redrawn maps, a host of efficient navigation tools, and more accurate catalog data for three times the number of deep sky objects shown in the preceding edition."

Sinott, Roger and Michael A. C. Perryman, Millennium Star Atlas (out of print),
Cambridge, MA, 1999: Sky Publishing

This was an excellent but expensive atlas in three volumes. I think it failed because it was not different enough from Uranometria, and cost three times as much. If you can find a reasonable used copy somewhere it would be worth picking up.