Earth Science

Astronomy | Astronomy History & Biographies | Geology, Water, Sea & Environment | Weather

Astronomy Books

Elementary Students:
LRFO = Let’s Read and Find Out early readers
Links that are crossed out are “broken links,” however, I have found that most of them actually do work if you click on them.

• Find the Constellations by H. A. Rey
• Our Solar System by Seymour Simon (72 pp.)
• What Makes a Shadow? by Clyde Bulla (LRFO 1)
• What Makes Day and Night by Franklyn M. Branley (LRFO 1)
• Sun Up, Sun Down by Gail Gibbons (32 pp.)
• The Moon Seems to Change by Franklyn M. Branley (LRFO 2) inc. exp
• Dear Rebecca, Winter Is Here by Jean Craighead George (IP) (seasons)
• Follow the Sunset by Herman and Nina Schneider
• The True Book Of Moon, Sun and Stars by John Bryan Lewellen (45 pp.)
• Galileo’s Treasure Box by Catherine Brighton (PB)
• Starry Messenger: Galileo Galilei by Peter Sís (PB)
• Can You Hitch a Ride on a Comet? by Sidney Rosen (40 pp.)
• One Giant Leap: The Story of Neil Armstrong by Don Brown (PB)
• Pluto’s Secret by Margaret A. Weitekamp (PB)
• Come See the Earth Turn Story of Leon Foucault by Lori Mortensen (PB)
• The Planets in Our Solar System by Franklyn M. Branley (LRFO 2)
• What the Moon is Like by Franklyn M. Branley (LRFO 2)
• The Sky Is Full of Stars by Franklyn M. Branley (LRFO 2)
• The Sun: Our Nearest Star by Franklyn M. Branley (LRFO 2)
• Energy from the Sun by Melvin Berger (LRFO)
• Mission to Mars by Franklyn M. Branley (LRFO 2)
• The International Space Station by Franklyn M. Branley (LRFO 2)
• Eclipse by Franklyn M. Branley (LRFO 2)
• The Big Dipper by Franklyn M. Branley (LRFO 1)
• Seymour Simon’s individual planet books (there are 15 of them)
• Dot to Dot in the Sky: Stories in the Stars by Joan Hinz (64 pp.)
• The Universe by Herbert S. Zim *telescopes (64 pp.)
• Junior Science Book of Stars by Phoebe Crosby (64 pp.)
• A Book of Outer Space for You by Franklyn M. Branley
• A Book of Stars for You by Franklyn M. Branley
• A Book of the Milky Way Galaxy for You by Franklyn M. Branley
• A Book of Planets for You by Franklyn M. Branley
• A Book of Mars for You by Franklyn M. Branley
• A Book of Planet Earth for You by Franklyn M. Branley
• A Book of Venus for You by Franklyn M. Branley

Middle and High School:

• The Stars: A New Way to See Them by H. A. Rey
• All About the Planets by Patricia Lauber
• Seymour Simon’s individual planet books (there are 15 of them)
• The Nine Planets by Franklyn Mansfield Branley
• The Planets by Dava Sobel (288 pp)
• Signs and Seasons: Understanding the Elements of Classical Astronomy by Jay Ryan and accompanying Field Journal
• The Stars by Clock and Fist by Henry M. Neely
• 13 Things That Don’t Make Sense by Michael Brooks – Ch 1 The missing Universe: We can only account for 4 percent of the cosmos (covers the expanding universe question and Black holes), Ch 2 The Pioneer Anomaly: Two spacecrafts are flouting the laws of physics, Ch 3 Varying Constants: Destabilizing our view of the universe (I think this is the chapter that covers the Super Nova), Ch 6 Viking: NASA scientists found evidence for life on Mars, then they changed their minds, maybe Ch 7 The WOW! Signal: Has ET already been in touch.
• The Edge of Physics: A Journey to Earth’s Extremes to Unlock the Secrets of the Universe by Anil Ananthaswamy (280 pp)
• A More Perfect Heaven by Dava Sobel (288 pp)
• The Copernican Revolution: Planetary Astronomy in the Development of Western Thought by Thomas Kuhn
• Blind Watchers Of The Sky: The People And Ideas That Shaped Our View Of The Universe by Rocky Kolb
• The Moon Voyage (From the Earth to the Moon’ & ‘Round the Moon’) by Jules Verne of Around the World in 80 days
• God and the Astronomers by Robert Jastrow (new version)
• The Creator and the Cosmos: How the Greatest Scientific Discoveries of the Century Reveal God by Hugh Ross
• Star Names: Their Lore and Meaning by Richard H. Allen
• The Extravagant Universe by Robert Kirshner
• The Origin of the Universe by John D. Barrows
• Mysterious Universe: Supernovae, Black Holes (Alex Filippenko) by Ellen Jackson
• Longitude by Dava Sobel, The True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time (A race to solve a national problem through the science of either astronomy, the first science, or machinery, the new evolving science. Historical and Political context. I loved it.) (208 pp, audio 4:20)

Histories/Biographies:

• The Great Astronomers by Robert S. Ball (176 pp)
• The Telescope Makers: From Galileo to the Space Age by Barbara Land (245 pp, 10 ch)

Nicolaus Copernicus

• Copernicus by Henry Thomas (192 pp. Messner)
• Dance of the Planets: The Universe of Nicolaus Copernicus by Nancy Veglahn (63 pp.)
• Nicolaus Copernicus: The Earth Is a Planet by Dennis B. Fradin (picture book)
• Copernicus: Founder of Modern Astronomy by Catherine M. Andronik (112 pp)
• Copernicus: Titan of Modern Astronomy by David Knight (186 pp.)
• A More Perfect Heaven: How Copernicus Revolutionized the Cosmos by Dava Sobel (288 pp.)
• Brother Astronomer: Adventures of a Vatican Scientist by Guy Consolmagno (228 pp.)
• The Book Nobody Read, Chasing the Revolutions of Nicolaus Copernicus by astronomer Owen Gingerich (306 pp.)

Tycho Brahe

• Tycho Brahe: Pioneer of Astronomy by Don Nardo (112 pp.)

Johannes Kepler

• Johannes Kepler and Planetary Motion by David C. Knight (194 pp.)
• Harmonious World of Johann Kepler by Sidney Rosen (220 pp.)
• Quest of Johannes Kepler, Astronomer by Barbara Land (128 pp.)

Galileo Galilei

• Galileo and the Magic Numbers by Sidney Rosen (212 pp.)
• Galileo’s Daughter by Dava Sobel (432 pp)
• Galileo Galilei: Space Pioneer by Arthur Gregor (191 p.)
• Galileo by Leonard Everett Fisher (PB)
• Starry Messenger: Galileo Galilei by Peter Sís (PB)

Robert Goddard

• Robert Goddard Trail Blazer To The Stars by Charles Daugherty
• Robert Goddard: Father of the Space Age by Charles Spain Verral and Paul Frame (80 pp.)
• Rocket Genius: Robert Goddard – Father of the Space Age by Charles Spain Verral (65 pp.)
• The Boy Who Dreamed of Rockets: How Robert Goddard became the father of the space age by Robert M Quackenbush
• Robert Goddard: Space Pioneer by Anne Perkins Dewey (154 pp.)

Isaac Newton

• Isaac Newton by Harry Sootin (191 pp. Messner)

William Herschel

• King’s Astronomer by Deborah Crawford (191 pp. Messner)

Caroline Herschel (William’s sister)

• Sweeper of the Stars: A Story of the Life of Caroline Herschel, Astronomer by Francis Higgins (127 pp.)

Neil Armstrong

• One Giant Leap: The Story of Neil Armstrong by Don Brown (PB)

Maria Mitchell (America’s first woman astronomer)

• Maria’s Comet by Deborah Hopkinson (PB)
• Maria Mitchell: The Soul of an Astronomer by Beatrice Gormley (137 pp.)
• America’s First Woman Astronomer, Maria Mitchell by Rachel Baker and Joanna Baker Merlen (192 pp. Messner)
• Stars in My Pocket by Erick Berry (190 pp.)
• Maria Mitchell: Stargazer by Katharine Wilkie ( pp.)

Benjamin Banneker

• Benjamin Banneker: Genius of Early America by Lillie Patterson (142 pp.)
• Your Most Humble Servant: The Amazing Story of Benjamin Banneker, Free Negro by Shirley Graham (235 pp.)

The Telescope Makers: From Galileo to the Space Age by Barbara Land (245 pp.)

Geology, Water, Sea & Environment Books

Elementary Students:
LRFO = Let’s Read and Find Out early readers

Water

• Junior Science Book of Water by Dan Peterson
• Super Simple Things to Do With Water by Kelly Doudna
• A Drop Of Water: A Book of Science and Wonder by Walter Wick (PB, gr. 3-6, supplement)

Earth

• The Earth’s Crust by Irving Adler (48 p.)
• The Soil that Feeds Us by Eleanor Heady (62 p.)
• Birth of an Island by Millicent Selsam (48 pages)
• All About the Planet Earth by Patricia Lauber
• Geology (A Golden Guide) by Frank H. T. Rhodes and Raymond Perlman
• First Book of the Earth by Irene Sevrey
• What’s Inside the Earth? by Herbert S. Zim
• What Happens Underground? by Ray Bethers
• What is the Earth? by Gene Darby
• Young Experimenters’ Workbook: Treasures of the Earth by Harry and Laura Sootin
• How Mountains Are Made by Kathleen Weidner Zoehfeld (LRFO 2)
• The First Book of Caves by Elizabeth Hamilton
• The Story of Caves by Dorothy Sterling
• Caves by Roma Gans
• Volcanoes by Franklyn M. Branley (LRFO 2)
• Earthquakes by Franklyn M. Branley (LRFO 2)
• How to Dig a Hole to the Other Side of the World by Faith McNulty (IP, gr. P-3, 32 p.)
• The Northern Lights by Jill Kalz (PB, gr 4+, 32 p.)
• Janice VanCleave’s Earth Science for Every Kid by Janice VanCleave
• How a Rock Came to be in a Fence on a Road Near a Town by Hy Ruchlis
• First Book of Stones by M. B. Cormack
• All Upon a Stone by Jean Craighead George
• Rocks & Minerals (DK Smithsonian) by Chris Pellant
• Rocks and Minerals (Golden Nature Guides) by Herbert S. Zim
• Rocks, Gems and Minerals (Golden Guide) by Paul R. Shaffer and Herbert S. Zim
• Rocks and How They Were Formed by Herbert S. Zim
• Rock is Lively by Dianna Aston
• Rock All Around by Margaret Farrington Bartlett
• Earth Treasures: Rocks and Minerals by Iris Tracy Comfort
• Wonder of Stones (LRFO) by Roma Gans
• Let’s Find Out About Rocks and Minerals by David C. Knight
• True Book of Rocks and Minerals by Illa Podendorf
• What is a Rock by John Syrocki
• Rocks All Around Us by Anne Terry White
• Adventures with Rocks and Minerals by Lloyd Barrow
• Rock Collecting (LRFO) by Roma Gans
• Rock-Hound’s Book by Seymour Simon
• Quartz by Herbert S. Zim
• Diamonds by Herbert S. Zim
• Fossils: A Guide to Prehistoric Life (Golden Nature Guides) by Paul R. Shaffer and Herbert S. Zim

River

• By Pond and River by Arabella Buckley
• True Book of Rivers by Norman & Madelyn Carlisle
• Wonders of Rivers by Rae Bains
• Rivers by Irving and Ruth Adler
• Let’s Go to the Brook by Harriet Huntington
• In a Running Brook by Winifred & Cecil Lubell
• Crawdad Creek by Scott Russell Sanders
• First Book of Rivers by Corinne Naden
• Rivers by Delia Goetz
• River by Roger Pilkington
• Follow the Water from Brook to Ocean by Arthur Dorros (LRFO 2)
• In Ponds and Streams by Margaret Waring Buck

MS and HS Students:

Air

• The World Above by Hicks

Ocean

• The Silent World by Captain J.Y. Cousteau
• Children of the Sea by Wilfrid Bronson
• The Sea Around Us by Rachel Carson (288 pp)
• Under the Sea Wind by Rachel Carson
• The Edge of the Sea by Rachel Carson
• What Happens in the Sea by Ray Bethers

Rivers

• Rivers by Irving and Ruth Adler
• In Ponds and Streams by Margaret Waring Buck

Geology

• Rocks, Rivers, and the Changing Earth by Herman Schneider (IP)
• All About Our Changing Rocks by Anne Terry White (142 pp.)
• All About the Planet Earth by Patricia Lauber (137 pp.)
• Science Explorer: Roy Chapman Andrews by Jules Archer (191 pp.)
• Secrets from the Rocks: Dinosaur Hunting With Roy Chapman Andrews by Albert Marrin (80 pp.)
• A Grain of Sand: Nature’s Secret Wonder by Gary Greenberg (Reference)
• The Geology Book (Wonders of Creation) by John D Morris
• The Map That Changed the World by Simon Winchester (I found the author’s attitude toward Christians offensive, but my son said he didn’t think it was as bad as that.)
• Earth: An Intimate History by Richard Fortey (480 pp.)
• Giants of Geology: The Story of the Great Geologists by Carroll Lane Fenton (318 pp.)
• The Control of Nature by John McPhee (adds a little ecology to your geology lesson, 288 pp.)
• Annals of the Former World by John McPhee (720 pp.) or the individual books:
  • Coming into the Country (Alaska, 448 pp.)
  • Assembling California (volcanic and tectonic processes, 304 pp.)
  • Basin and Range (The Rockies to the Sierra Nevadas, 240 pp.)
  • In Suspect Terrain (Appalachian Mountain system, 224 pp.)
  • Rising from the Plains (Rocky Mountains, Wyoming, 208 pp.)
  • or other McPhee books

Environment

• A Sand County Almanac by Aldo Leopold
• Walden by Henry David Thoreau
• Rachel Carson: Witness for Nature by Linda Lear
• Pilgrim at Tinker Creek by Annie Dillard
• The 50-Year Farm Bill article by Wendell Berry (the actual farm bill)
• The Gift of Good Land: Further Essays Cultural & Agricultural by Wendell Berry
• Our Only World: Ten Essays by Wendell Berry
• Home Place: Essays on Ecology by Stan Rowe
• Nature as Measure: The Selected Essays of Wes Jackson
• The Skeptical Environmentalist by Bjorn Lomborg

Weather Books

Elementary Students:
LRFO = Let’s Read and Find Out early readers

• Close to the Wind: The Beaufort Scale by Peter Malone (PB, K+, 32 pp.)
• Snowflake Bentley by Jacqueline Briggs Martin (PB, gr. K-3, 32 pp.) AND
• Snowflakes in Photographs by W. A. Bentley (reference, Bentley’s photographs)
• My Brother Loved Snowflakes: The Story of Wilson A. Bentley, the Snowflake Man by Mary Bahr (gr 1-5, 32 pp.)
• Snow Is Falling by Franklyn M. Branley (LRFO 1)
• Snow by Thelma Harrington Bell
• Not Only for Ducks: The Story of Rain by Glenn Orlando Blough (46 pp.)
• On the Same Day in March: A Tour of the World’s Weather by Marilyn Singer (PB, 40 pp.)
• The Big Storm by Bruce Hiscock (PB, 32 pp.)
• Rain and Hail by Franklyn M. Branley (LRFO)
• Feel the Wind by Arthur Dorros (LRFO 2)
• Sunshine Makes the Seasons by Franklyn M. Branley (LRFO 2)
• What Will the Weather Be? by Lynda DeWitt (LRFO 2)
• Flash, Crash, Rumble, and Roll by Franklyn M. Branley (LRFO 2)
• Tornado Alert by Franklyn M. Branley (LRFO 2)
• Down Comes the Rain by Franklyn M. Branley (LRFO 2)
• Clouds by Anne Rockwell (LRFO 1)
• Follow the Water from Brook to Ocean by Arthur Dorros (LRFO 2)
• The Story of the Trade Winds by Ruth Brindze (68 p.)
• Weather by Seymour Simon (40 p.)
• Seymour Simon’s other weather books (Tornadoes, Lightning, Hurricanes, Storms, Global Warming)
• The First Book of Weather by Rose Wyler (63 p.)
• Junior Science Book of Rain, Hail, Sleet and Snow by Nancy Larrick (63 p.) *great option
• Storms by Melvin Berger *1977 version (48 p. gr. 4-7)
• Man Who Named the Clouds by Julie Hanna (40 pp.)
• Climate Maps by Ian F. Mahaney (PB, 24 p.) *Don’t miss this one
• Air: The Elements by Ken Robbins
• Blizzard!: The Storm that Changed America by Jim Murphy (144 pp.)
• Miss Pickerell and the Weather Satellite by Ellen MacGregor (157 p.)
• Danny Dunn and the Weather Machine by Jay Williams (144 p.)

MS and HS students:

• Everyday Weather and How It Works by Herman Schneider (189 pp.)
• Look at the Sky and Tell the Weather by Eric Sloane (108 p.)
• All About the Weather by Ivan Ray Tannehill (148 p.)
• Our Changing Weather by Carroll Lane Fenton (110 p.)
• The Snowflake Man: A Biography of Wilson A. Bentley by Duncan C. Blanchard (237 p.)
• The Invention of Clouds by Richard Hamblyn (256 p.)
• The Perfect Storm: A True Story of Men Against the Sea by Sebastian Junger (248 p.)
• Incredible Man of Science: Irving Langmuir by Virginia Veeder Westervelt (192 p. Messner biography)
• Isaac’s Storm: A Man, a Time, and the Deadliest Hurricane in History by Erik Larson (338 p. story about a hurricane that hit Galveston, TX in 1900)
• Fitzroy: The Remarkable Story of Darwin’s Captain and the Invention of the Weather Forecast by John Gribbin
• The Weather Experiment: The Pioneers Who Sought to See the Future by Peter Moore (416 pp.)
• Meteorology; or, Weather Explained by J. G. M’Pherson (126 pp.)
• Reading the Weather by Morris Longstreth (402 pp.)

For Reference:

• Skies and the Artist: How to Draw Clouds and Sunsets by Eric Sloane

Resources gathered in part from Sabbath Mood Homeschool