THE SEARCH FOR EXTRATERRESTRIAL LIFE

Reviewed 5/07/1996

The Search for Extraterrestrial Life, by William A. Gutsch

THE SEARCH FOR EXTRATERRESTRIAL LIFE
William A. Gutsch
New York: Crown Publishers, 1991

Rating:

5.0

High

ISBN 0-517-57818-2 139p. HC/BWI $14.00

Dr. Gutsch is a professional astronomer and the chairman of New York's American Museum – Hayden Planetarium. In this, his first book for children, he lays out the scientific basis for believing that extraterrestrial life might exist in clear and accurate terms. He then goes on to briefly cover the history and techniques of SETI, and finally discusses some of the implications of actually making contact.

The book is supplemented by some excellent black and white of photographs of planets from the Voyager and other scientific missions, and includes Percival Lowell's map of "canals" on Mars. A highlight for me was the thorough explanation of the outbound message sent in 1972.

To me, the opening chapters seemed a bit simplistic and repetitious. Dr. Gutsch seems to do better when he gets into the cutting-edge topics. He writes of the implications of contact with considerable eloquence, in a style somewhat reminiscent of Arthur C. Clarke's. I enjoyed the book overall and would rate it as excellent for someone new to this topic.

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