Relativistic astrophysics and cosmology : a primer /

Suitable as a course resource for advanced undergraduates or graduate students, this is also an excellent self-study book for physics students who wish to learn the basics of general relativity and its application to astrophysics. Hoyng (SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research, Utrecht) does a superb job of providing the groundwork of relativity theory and then connecting the theoretical constructs to actual observations and experiments. The Gravity Probe B mission is covered, and there is a very good discussion of black holes and the astrophysical evidence for their existence. The short but illuminating discussion of the apparent black hole at the center of our galaxy is quite nice, as is the discussion of how to understand black hole physics in the context of a physical observer. The chapters on gravitational waves and the evolution of the universe are equally good. Adequate illustrations and bibliography for this type of work. ^BSumming Up: Highly recommended. Upper-division undergraduates; graduate students; professionals. A. Spero formerly, University of California, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory