Provides a look at Lewis Swift's life, career, and scientific accomplishments as an astronomer, including his discovery of the Swift-Tuttle comet named after him
Discusses Swift's influence on the lives of others, including amateur astronomer Edward Emerson Barnard, who turned professional during the late 19th century
Equips readers with a complete list of Swift's deep sky objects
Includes extensive quotes from Swift that provide details about his life, astronomy, and other topics

Autorentext
Gary W. Kronk received his Bachelor of Science in Journalism from Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville. He has been employed at Washington University at St. Louis since 1985, where he is a programmer analyst, and occasionally teaches classes on software programs.
Observing, researching, and writing about comets is an activity the author has participated in for most of his life, with over 2,000 observations of over 130 comets. He is the author of seven titles, and has been published in Sky & Telescope, Astronomy, Icarus, the Journal of the Association of Lunar and Planetary Observers and more. His books include Comets: A Descriptive Catalog (Enslow Publishers, 1984), Meteor Showers (Enslow, 1988), and a six volume series title Cometography with Cambridge University Press. The 5th volume was published in 2010. In 2004, the International Astronomical Union's Minor Planet Center announced that minor planet number 48300 was being giventhe name Kronk in honor of the author's extensive research for his Cometography series.

Inhalt
Chapter 1: Family and Swift's Early Years.- Chapter 2: Swift Steps into Astronomy.- Chapter 3: Duffy's Cider Mill.- Chapter 4: The Solar Eclipse of July 29, 1878. Chapter 5: Warner Observatory: A Dream Becomes Reality.- Chapter 6: Celebrity and Its Consequences.- Chapter 7: Edward Emerson Barnard.- Chapter 8: Swift's Heyday of Discovery.- Chapter 9: Growing Dissatisfaction at Warner Observatory.- Chapter 10: A Mountain Resort and Lowe Observatory.- Chapter 11: A Few of Swift's Favorite Things.- Chapter 12: The Final Years.- Chapter 13: Swift's Legacy.- Chapter 14: Annotations for Swift's Catalogs.- Swift's Deep Sky Catalogs.- List of Abbreviations Used in the NGC and IC Descriptions.- Index.