
Award-winning science journalist and space historian Andrew Chaikin has authored books and articles about space exploration and astronomy for more than 25 years. Writer-director and explorer James Cameron (Titanic, Aliens of the Deep) called him “our best historian of the space age.” Chaikin is best known as the author of A Man on the Moon: The Voyages of the Apollo Astronauts, widely regarded as the definitive account of the moon missions. First published in 1994, this acclaimed work was the main basis for Tom Hanks' 12-part HBO miniseries, From the Earth to the Moon, which won the Emmy for best miniseries in 1998. Chaikin spent eight years writing and researching A Man on the Moon, including over 150 hours of personal interviews with 23 of the 24 lunar astronauts (Apollo 13's Jack Swigert was already deceased). Apollo moonwalker Gene Cernan said of the book, "I've been there. Chaikin took me back." A new edition of the book, with a new afterword for the 50th anniversary of the space age, was published by Penguin in 2007. Chaikin’s newest book is A Passion for Mars, published in September 2008 by Abrams. Apollo 11 astronaut and author Michael Collins called it a “masterpiece of a book,” and Rocket Boys author Homer Hickam said, “I am completely and utterly in love with this book.” Upcoming works to be published in May 2009 are Voices from the Moon (Viking Studio) featuring excerpts from his conversations with Apollo astronauts, and Mission Control, This is Apollo (Viking Childrens) a book for middle-school readers illustrated with paintings by Apollo moonwalker Alan Bean. He is also the author of Air and Space: The National Air and Space Museum Story of Flight, published in 1997 by Bulfinch Press. Chaikin's illustrated narrative of space exploration, SPACE: A History of Space Exploration in Photographs, was published in 2002 by Carlton Books. He co-authored the text for the highly successful collection of Apollo photography, Full Moon, which was published by Knopf in 1999. Chaikin collaborated with moonwalker-turned-artist Alan Bean to write Apollo: An Eyewitness Account, published in 1998 by the Greenwich Workshop Press. He also co-edited The New Solar System, a compendium of writings by planetary scientists, now in its fourth edition. His essays include the chapter on human spaceflight in The National Geographic Encyclopedia of Space, published in 2004, and Live from the Moon: The Societal Impact of Apollo for NASA’s 2007 book The Societal Impact of Spaceflight. From 1999 to 2001 Chaikin served as Executive Editor for Space and Science at SPACE.com, the definitive website for all things space. He was also the editor of SPACE.com's print magazine, Space Illustrated. Chaikin is a commentator for National Public Radio's Morning Edition, and has appeared on Good Morning America, Nightline, and the NPR programs Fresh Air and Talk of the Nation. He has been an advisor to NASA on space policy and public communications. A former editor of Sky & Telescope magazine, Chaikin has also been a contributing editor of Popular Science and has written for Newsweek, Air&Space/Smithsonian, World Book Encyclopedia, Scientific American, and other publications. A graduate of Brown University, Chaikin served on the Viking missions to Mars at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and was a researcher at the Smithsonian's Center for Earth and Planetary Studies before becoming a science journalist in 1980. He is an amateur musician and songwriter; he has also been an occasional space artist, and is one of the founders of the International Association of Astronomical Artists.
by Andrew Chaikin
Rating: 4.5 ⭐
• 2 recommendations ❤️
"The authoritative masterpiece" ( L. A. Times ) on the Apollo space program and NASA's journey to the moonThis acclaimed portrait of heroism and ingenuity captures a watershed moment in human history. The astronauts themselves have called it the definitive account of their missions. On the night of July 20, 1969, our world changed forever when Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin walked on the moon. Based on in-depth interviews with twenty-three of the twenty-four moon voyagers, as well as those who struggled to get the program moving, A Man on the Moon conveys every aspect of the Apollo missions with breathtaking immediacy and stunning detail.A Man on the Moon is also the basis for the acclaimed miniseries produced by Tom Hanks, From the Earth to the Moon , now airing and streaming again on HBO in celebration of the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11.
by Andrew Chaikin
Rating: 4.1 ⭐
July 20, 1969, marked one of the climactic moments in our history? The day Apollo 11 landed on the moon. But it is only one piece of a magnificent story. Mission Control, This Is Apollo, by the acclaimed Andrew Chaikin (author of A Man on the Moon, basis of the HBO miniseries From the Earth to the Moon), recounts space history from the Mercury missions through Apollo 17 and beyond. It is illustrated with stunning full-color paintings by astronaut Alan Bean, who walked on the moon with Pete Conrad on Apollo 12 and has devoted his post-NASA life to creating art. Handsome, informative, and dramatic, this is no textbook?it is the tale of humankind's greatest adventure in the last space.Book HardcoverPublication 5/28/2009 128Reading Age 8 and Up
by Andrew Chaikin
Rating: 4.4 ⭐
The epic of the Apollo missions told in the astronauts' own words and gorgeously illustrated with their photographsAndrew Chaikin's A Man on the Moon is considered the definitive history of the Apollo moon missions-arguably the pinnacle of human experience. Now, using never-before-published quotes taken from his in-depth interviews with twenty-three of the twenty-four Apollo lunar astronauts, Chaikin and his collaborator, Victoria Kohl, have created an extraordinary account of the lunar missions. In Voices from the Moon the astronauts vividly recount their experiences in intimate detail; their distinct personalities and remarkably varied perspectives emerge from their candid and deeply personal reflections. Carefully assembled into a narrative that reflects the entire arc of the lunar journey, Voices from the Moon captures the magnificence of the Apollo program like no other book. Paired with their own words are 160 images taken from NASA's new high-resolution scans of the photos the astronauts took during the missions. Many of the photos, which are reproduced with stunning and unprecedented detail, have rarely-if ever-been seen by the general public. Voices from the Moon is an utterly unique chronicle of these defining moments in human history.
A photographic survey of space exploration captures the major "firsts" of this extraordinary chapter in human history, from Sputnik I through landings on the Moon and Mars, in some three hundred dramatic images.
The quest for Mars is chronicled by bestselling author Andrew Chaikin in this story of a passionate band of Earthbound explorers caught in the irresistible pull of the Red Planet.They include celebrated figures: astronomer Carl Sagan, who champions the idea of life on Mars-; rocket scientist Wernher von Braun, drawing up plans for human Mars expeditions; and science-fiction author Ray Bradbury, standard-bearer for Mars’s crucial place in human destiny. Readers also meet the rogue grad students known as the “Mars Underground,” keepers of the flame when Mars falls off NASA’s radar; biologist Jerry Soffen, looking for signs of life in a Martian meteorite; geologist Mike Malin, who defies skeptics to reveal a Mars no one imagines; and many others, including Chaikin himself, who served on the first Viking Mars landing and covered Mars exploration as a science journalist.Based on extensive interviews, illustrated with compelling images, and animated by the author’s own passion, Chaikin’s account will resonate with anyone who has ever dreamed of a journey to Mars.
To commemorate the 30th anniversary of the first moon landing, Time-Life Books presents a three-volume illustrated set of the acclaimed work by Andrew Chaikin, A Man on the Moon. Chaikin's definitive account of the Apollo missions is brought to life with more than 500 illustrations and photographs, including some extremely rare or never-before-published photos collected from the archives of NASA, Life Magazine and even the astronauts themselves. The Time-Life edition also contains paintings by Apollo astronaut Alan Bean, commissioned artists' renderings and diagrams of the inner workings of spacesuits and rockets. The three-book commemorative set is showcased in a beautifully illustrated 4-color slipcase. Included in the set Volume One Giant Leap (368 pgs)Volume The Odyssey Continues (256 pgs)Volume Lunar Explorers (336 pgs)
In February 1962, he became the first American to orbit the Earth. Since then John Herschel Glenn Jr. has stood in the popular imagination as a quintessentially American hero. In John America's Astronaut, a special edition e-book featuring 45 stunning photographs as well as a video, Chaikin explores Glenn's path to greatness. John Glenn features new details on Glenn's selection as an astronaut in 1959, newly synchronized onboard film and audio of Glenn's harrowing reentry from orbit on his 1962 Mercury mission, rarely seen images of Glenn in orbit and from the John Glenn archives at Ohio State University, as well as new, touching reminiscenes of Glenn's 1998 return to space from his Space Shuttle crewmates. Glenn is the embodiment of the history of human spaceflight and the indefatigable American spirit, and John America's Astronaut is his amazing story.
Depicts the milestones of aviation and spaceflight, from the first hot-air balloon to the Wright brothers, the Apollo moon landing, and beyond
Josh Simpson's glass platters, vessels and sculptures are celebrated internationally for their extraordinary, complex beauty. His imaginary landscapes of the seas, skies and heavens are compelling and enigmatic. They are also technical feats without parallel. This book steps inside Simpson's studio and provides an intimate look at the inspirations, experiences and techniques Simpson uses to create his wondrous glass worlds. Readers will witness first-hand the drama of hot glass processes and learn many of the small technical secrets that elevate his art beyond the ordinary. Dazzling photographs of Simpson's work complement this behind-the-scenes glimpse into his creative genius.
Enter the magical world of the ancient dinosaurs and how they lived.
by Andrew Chaikin
Rating: 3.3 ⭐
Three volume set in slipcase in original factory shrink-wrap.
by Andrew Chaikin
Rating: 4.0 ⭐
A Man on the Moon, Volume I
On October 1, 1958, the world’s first civilian space agency opened for business as an emergency response to the Soviet Union’s launch of Sputnik a year earlier. Within a decade, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, universally known as NASA, had evolved from modest research teams experimenting with small converted rockets into one of the greatest technological and managerial enterprises ever known, capable of sending people to the Moon aboard gigantic rockets and of dispatching robot explorers to Venus, Mars, and worlds far beyond. In spite of occasional, tragic setbacks in NASA’s history, the Apollo lunar landing project remains a byword for American ingenuity; the winged space shuttles spearheaded the International Space Station and a dazzling array of astronomical satellites and robotic landers, and Earth observation programs have transformed our understanding of the cosmos and our home world’s fragile place within it. Throughout NASA’s 60-year history, images have played a central role. Who today is not familiar with the Hubble Space Telescope’s mesmerizing views of the universe or the pin-sharp panoramas of Mars from NASA’s surface rovers? And who could forget the photographs of the first men walking on the Moon? This compact edition is derived from our XL edition, which was researched in collaboration with NASA, and gathers hundreds of historic photographs and rare concept renderings, scanned and remastered using the latest technology. Texts by science and technology journalist Piers Bizony, former NASA chief historian Roger Launius, and best-selling Apollo historian Andrew Chaikin round out this comprehensive exploration of NASA, from its earliest days to its current development of new space systems for the future. The NASA Archives is more than just a fascinating pictorial history of the U.S. space program. It is also a profound meditation on why we choose to explore space and how we will carry on this grandest of all adventures in the years to come. About the series TASCHEN is 40! Since we started our work as cultural archaeologists in 1980, TASCHEN has become synonymous with accessible publishing, helping bookworms around the world curate their own library of art, anthropology, and aphrodisia at an unbeatable price. Today we celebrate 40 years of incredible books by staying true to our company credo. The 40 series presents new editions of some of the stars of our program―now more compact, friendly in price, and still realized with the same commitment to impeccable production.
by Andrew Chaikin
by Andrew Chaikin
by Andrew Chaikin
by Andrew Chaikin
by Andrew Chaikin
Reader's Digest, 1994. A Man on the Moon; the Downing Street Years; Ben & Jerry' the Inside Scoop; The Withering Child. 573 pp. with ribbon page marker.Navy boards w/silver on spine. DJ with photo of each author's book. Light blue endpages. "About the Authors" at end of book with photos.
by Andrew Chaikin