Book Review - Unusual Telescopes (Peter L. Manly)

[Chiron]

I've recently finished Unusual Telescopes by Peter L. Manly (Cambridge University Press 1995 ISBN 0-521-48393-X) and thought I'd provide a brief review.

The book is split into nine chapters covering topics such as optics, mounts, mount drive systems, fixed optical systems (such as heliostats), ultimate size limits of telescopes and a final chapter of whimsy. The time scale covered runs from the early telescopes of Herschel and Lord Rosse up to telescopes from around the late eighties (the first hardback edition of the book was published in 1991). As for the telescopes themselves, there are apparently over a hundred and fifty described (I haven't counted them!) ranging from home made devices to multi-million pound research devices. Though the book is largely focused on optical devices, there are brief mentions for radio, microwave and x-ray devices. The book is illustrated with over a hundred and fifty illustrations, a mixture of diagrams and photographs and a comprehensive index.

It should be noted as the original edition was published in 1991, there is very little on the electronic control of telescopes mounts and only a small amount of observing by electronic means. I also found that reproduction of some of the photographs was a bit murky in my copy.

To be honest, I struggled a little bit with this book. I have a reasonable science/engineering background but not (at the moment) a lot of telescope knowledge. For me personally, I think I would have preferred fewer telescopes and mounts, but covered in more detail, particularly for some of the more historical instruments. What I would say though is that if you do have the skills to make your own telescopes/mounts, there are a lot of interesting ideas contained in the book which could provide a starting point for a project. Though I'm not sure that there is enough information in the book to actually build a telescope/mount, there are references given (particularly to issues of Sky & Telescopes and Telescope Making) for further details.

On the whole, possibly not for the beginner, but people with more experience, particularly builders, may get a lot out of it.

XPN