by
Robert Burnham, Jr.

Considered as a collector of rare and precious things, the amateur astronomer has a great advantage over amateurs in all other fields, who must usually content themselves with second and third-rate specimens. For example, only a few of the world’s mineralologists could hope to own such a specimen as the Hope diamond, and I have yet to meet the amateur fossil collector who displays a complete tyrannosaurus skeleton in his cabinet. In contrast, the amateur astronomer has access at all times to the original objects of his study; the masterworks of the heavens belong to him as much as to the great observatories of the world. And there is no privilege like that of being allowed to stand in the presence of the original.

Yet, it sometimes happens, perhaps because of the very real aesthetic appeal of astronomy and the almost incomprehensible vastness of the universe, that the more solidly practical and duller mentalities tend to see the study as an “escape from reality” – surely one of the most thoroughly lopsided views ever propounded. The knowledge gained from astronomy has always been, and will continue to be, of the greatest practical value. But, this apart, only the most myopic minds could identify “reality” solely with the doings of man on this planet. Contemporary civilization, whatever its advantages and achievements, is characterized by many features which are, to put it very mildly, disquieting, to turn from this increasingly artificial and strangely alien world is to escape from unreality; to return to the timeless world of the mountains, the sea, the forest, and the stars is to return to sanity and truth.

Although somewhat dated, (1978) the Handbook is still one of the most complete and comprehensive introductions to astronomy available, the introductory chapter is the best crash course in the science I have seen, and I still recommend it to those interested in getting into the field. Burnham belongs on every astronomer’s bookshelf, just as Carson’s The Sea Around Us is essential reading for the oceanographer or Darwin’s The Voyage of the Beagle is for the biologist. It is of value not only for its clear explanations and detailed catalogue listings, maps, charts and illustrations, but for its historical and mythological references and its beautifully crafted prose. It reveals astronomy not just as a branch of physics, or a specialty in the earth sciences, but as a consistent philosophical system–a way of looking at the universe and making sense of reality. But it could also be argued that insight was not enough for him.

Robert Burnham Jr possessed a beautiful but troubled mind. He died unknown, destitute and homeless at the age of 61 in 1993.

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