Dunn, Robert 1981- (Robert J. Dunn)

PERSONAL:

Born 1981. Education: Earned undergraduate degree from Sidney Sussex College; Cambridge University, Ph.D., 2006. Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society.

ADDRESSES:

Office—University of Southampton, School of Physics and Astronomy, Southampton, Hampshire SO17 1BJ, England. E-mail—r.j.dunn@phys.soton.ac.uk.

CAREER:

Astrophysicist. Southampton University, Southampton, England, postdoctoral researcher, 2006—.

WRITINGS:

(With Jamie Wilkins) 300 Astronomical Objects: A Visual Reference to the Universe, Firefly Books (Buffalo, NY), 2006.

Contributor to Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.

SIDELIGHTS:

Robert Dunn collaborated on his first book with fellow astrophysicist Jamie Wilkins. Dunn and Wilkins both earned their degrees at Cambridge University in England, and Dunn went on to conduct postdoctoral research at Southampton University in the Department of Physics Astronomy Group with Rob Fender. Dunn's work deals primarily with clusters of galaxies and the way active galactic nuclei (AGN) interact within them, a continuation of his doctoral dissertation research.

Dunn and Wilkins published 300 Astronomical Objects: A Visual Reference to the Universe in 2006. Published by Firefly Books, the account considers hundreds of celestial objects in the universe that are either popularly known or are of scientific importance and interest. The book begins with a historical introduction to the development of the field of astronomy in the United Kingdom. 300 Astronomical Objects covers such objects as the planets, our sun, comets, asteroids, manmade satellites, space probes, and orbiters. The planets and sun are presented with informational summaries that include statistics on their density, mass, average surface temperature, and other information. The manmade satellites covered include the Hubble telescope and the Spitzer telescope, and includes information on their missions and projected paths. Space probes, such as Viking, Pathfinder, and the Mars landers, are also discussed in the text, including their missions and type of information they obtain. Dunn and Wilkins analyze various objects and phenomenon in the Milky Way, such as our closest neighboring stars, protostars, star clusters, nebulae, supernovas, and black holes. The authors also discuss other galaxies close to, but outside of, the Milky Way. All-sky surveys are also found in the text. Throughout the book, the authors include high-quality color photographs of the objects discussed and include some from the Hubble telescope and the Chandra X-Ray Observatory.

A contributor to Science News described the book as a "lengthy but hand-size atlas," which was full of "detailed, full-color photos." The contributor called the summaries of celestial bodies as "straightforward" and "brief." A contributor to SciTech Book News also felt that the text is "well-illustrated." Stuart J. Goldman, writing in Sky & Telescope, found the book to be "lavishly illustrated." Goldman described the work as a "minute astronomical encyclopedia packed with pictures and information." He pointed out, however, that since the book lacks star charts and does not give any instruction on how to find the objects covered in the text, the book would not be suitable as an observing guide. Goldman did allow that 300 Astronomical Objects is "perfect" for those without much space on their book shelves due to its high volume of information in a compact size.

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Science Books & Films, July 1, 2007, review of 300 Astronomical Objects: A Visual Reference to the Universe, p. 163.

Science News, September 2, 2006, review of 300 Astronomical Objects, p. 159.

SciTech Book News, March, 2007, review of 300 Astronomical Objects.

Sky & Telescope, March, 2007, Stuart J. Goldman, review of 300 Astronomical Objects, p. 86.

ONLINE

University of Southampton, School of Physics and Astronomy Web site,http://www.astro.soton.ac.uk/ (January 20, 2008), author profile.