Watson explains and entertains to equally strong effect.–Publishers Weekly

An up-to-the-minute, entertaining revelation for armchair explorers of deep space.–Kirkus Reviews

Exploding Stars and Invisible Planets is a superb romp through the historical, cultural, and scientific astronomical phenomena that surround us every day. Fred Watson is a treasure for his witty and incisive descriptions of science, fun and interesting to all. The book spans medieval astronomers to NASA deep space missions and even includes Goldilocks and The Terminator (revealed as serene and even romantic). Enjoy!–Col. Pamela A. Melroy, USAF, Ret., former NASA astronaut

Despite the complexity of the universe, you feel as though you’ve always been part of unravelling its mysteries as you read Fred Watson’s entertaining book. You will explore its history, spot things in the night sky you’ve never noticed before, and if you’re hoping for a wild new travel adventure, you’ll learn how to go to space without contaminating the cosmos with pesky earthly microbes. Bonus!–Amanda Bauer, head of education and public outreach, Large Synoptic Survey Telescope.

This is a great read! Twenty-one chapters, each a self-contained gem, exploring today’s hot topics in astronomy and space research. It is up to date, clear, and entertaining. A great way to get up to speed with developments in astronomy such as gravitational waves and fast radio bursts. Highly recommended!–Jocelyn Bell Burnell, University of Oxford

Watson sifts and orders a most extensive range of material, then makes it all readily understandable… This book genuinely deserves a readership spanning all ages and many levels of prior expertise.–Mark Thomas, Canberra Times

Full of science and wonder, this book will leave you looking upwards.–Richard Glover, ABC Radio

Fred Watson is astronomer at large with the Australian Commonwealth Department of Industry, Innovation, and Science. He worked at both of Britain’s royal observatories before joining the Australian Astronomical Observatory as astronomer in charge in 1995. Recognized internationally for helping to pioneer the use of fibre optics in astronomy during the 1980s and ’90s, Watson is best known today for his radio and TV broadcasts and popular astronomy books, which include Stargazer: The Life and Times of the Telescope (2004) and Why Is Uranus Upside Down? And Other Questions About the Universe (2007). He also has an asteroid named after him (5691 Fredwatson).