The NATO ARW on the problems of ground-based observations of Solar Eclipses was held in Sinaia (Romania) between 1 and 5 June 1996. The Workshop was divided into seven sessions, in which 17 papers were given, by key speakers, along with 30 oral presentations. Additionally, 30 posters were presented. This issue contains only the invited and oral papers. The posters are to be published in a special issue of the Romanian Astronomical Journal. The contributions were based on our present knowledge of solar corona physics and on the perspectives for future total eclipse observations, focussing especially on that of August 11, 1999, which will be the last eclipse of the century. The workshop sessions reviewed the results of past eclipse observations, coronal hot and cold structures, coronal heating, public education, and instrumental problems. At the end of the meeting a fruitful general discussion drew out problems to be studied and techniques to be used for forthcoming observations. Posters completed the workshop contributions.

This book contains the proceedings of the Summerschool and Workshop Motions in the Solar Atmosphere held from September 1st to September 12th, 1997, at the Solar Observatory Kanzelh6he, which belongs to the Astronomical Institute of the University of Graz, Austria. This type of conference has proved to be very successful in bringing together experts from specialized topics in solar physics and young scientists and students from different countries. Moreover, the summerschool was accompanied by a workshop which offered young scientists the opportunity to present their new results to a general audience. In total the summerschool and the workshop were attended by 50 par ticipants from 10 different countries. The topic selected was quite general, covering the whole solar atmo sphere and its dynamic processes: from dynamo actions and large and small scale motions in the photosphere through the complex dynamics of the chro mosphere to the corona. Also the possible influences of variations in solar output parameters to the Earth's climate were addressed. The main lec tures were given by 7 lecturers. Furthermore, there were 20 contributions to the workshop which were presented in oral form. The selection of the Kanzelh6he Solar Observatory located in Central Europe, Austria, also permitted colleagues from the former eastern coun tries to attend the meeting. At the Kanzelh6he Observatory new instru ments had been recently installed so that the meeting provided a further stimulus for the local people working there.

The aim of this Advanced Study Institute was to give an account on the most recent results obtained in solar research. Bucharest was chosen to host it, because the capital city of Romania was located right in the middle of the totality path of the last eclipse of the millennium, on 11th August 1999; furthermore the phenomenon was close to reach there its longest duration: 2m 23s. Such a total eclipse is not only a very spectacular event which draws the crowds: to astronomers, solar eclipses still offer the best conditions for observing the lower part of the corona. The Sun plays a crucial role in our very existence. It was responsible for the formation of the Earth, and rendered this planet fit to host living beings, providing the right amount of heat, and this for a long enough span of time. Quite understandably, it has always been a prime target of human curiosity, and more recently one of scientific investigation. During the last century, it was realized that the Sun is a star like billions of others; we learned since that it draws its energy from the nuclear fusion of hydrogen, and we are now able to estimate its age and life expectancy.

Eclipses have long been seen as important celestial phenomena, whether as omens affecting the future of kingdoms, or as useful astronomical events to help in deriving essential parameters for theories of the motion of the moon and sun. This is the first book to collect together all presently known records of timed eclipse observations and predictions from antiquity to the time of the invention of the telescope. In addition to cataloguing and assessing the accuracy of the various records, which come from regions as diverse as Ancient Mesopotamia, China, and Europe, the sources in which they are found are described in detail. Related questions such as what type of clocks were used to time the observations, how the eclipse predictions were made, and how these prediction schemes were derived from the available observations are also considered. The results of this investigation have important consequences for how we understand the relationship between observation and theory in early science and the role of astronomy in early cultures, and will be of interest to historians of science, astronomers, and ancient and medieval historians.

Eclipses and problems related to them have been, from ancient times, one of the main interests not only of astronomers but indeed of all mankind. The appearance of eclipses, lunar as well as solar, excited the imagination of our ancestors and provoked their curiosity to explain their origin or to use them for the further investigation of celestial bodies. With the present development of astronomy the eclipse problems are not limited to the Sun and the Moon, as in the past, but have been progressively extended to the components of the solar system and to domains of radiations other than optical ones. Our intention is to give an account of all these problems in their theoretical and experimental form with some additions on their historical development. Those of our readers not interested in the historical side may feel at first inclined to ignore this part, but we are sure that eventually they will be sufficiently interested to repair this omission.

First published in 1999, this much expanded and updated edition of the best-selling handbook Astrophotography for the Amateur provides a complete guide to taking pictures of stars, galaxies, the Moon, the Sun, comets, meteors and eclipses, using equipment and materials readily available to the hobbyist. In this new edition, the book has been completely revised and now includes new chapters on computer image processing and CCD imaging; expanded advice on choosing cameras and telescopes; completely updated information about the films; a much larger bibliography; and hundreds of new photographs (in colour, and black and white) demonstrating the latest equipment and techniques. Astrophotography for the Amateur has become the standard handbook for all amateur astronomers. This expanded and updated edition provides an ideal introduction for beginners and a complete handbook for advanced amateurs. It will also appeal to photography enthusiasts who can discover how to take spectacular images with only modest equipment.