This book comprises expository articles on different aspects of gravitation and cosmology that are aimed at graduate students. The topics discussed are of contemporary interest assuming only an elementary introduction to gravitation and cosmology. The presentations are to a certain extent pedagogical in nature, and the material developed is not usually found in sufficient detail in recent textbooks in these areas.

This book comprises expository articles on different aspects of gravitation and cosmology that are aimed at graduate students. The topics discussed are of contemporary interest assuming only an elementary introduction to gravitation and cosmology. The presentations are to a certain extent pedagogical in nature, and the material developed is not usually found in sufficient detail in recent textbooks in these areas.

Stars -- Binaries -- The interstellar medium -- Galaxies.

Stamps and other postal documents are an attractive vehicle for presenting astronomy and its development. Written with expertise and great enthusiasm, this unique book offers a historical and philatelic survey of astronomy and some related topics on space exploration. It contains more than 1300 color reproductions of stamps relating to the history of astronomy, ranging from the earliest observations of the sky to modern research conducted with satellites and space probes. Featured are the astronomers and astrophysicists who contributed to this marvelous story – not only Ptolemy, Copernicus, Kepler, Newton, Herschel, and Einstein but also hundreds of other minor protagonists who played an important role in the development of this, the most ancient yet the most modern of all the sciences. The book also examines in depth the diverse areas which have contributed to the history of astronomy, including the instrumentation, the theories, and the observations. Many stamps illustrate the beauty and the mystery of celestial objects: galaxies, nebulae, stars, planets, satellites, comets, and minor celestial bodies.