Dordrecht, Netherlands: Kluwer Academic Publishers, 1992

In “Astronomical Masers,” Moshe Elitzur provides a detailed overview of interstellar maser phenomenon -- including how it begins and inversion procedures -- line formation and radiative transfer. The book examines maser emission and claims that the concept is one of the biggest findings in molecular astronomy. Readers learn how maser emission, sometimes created in laboratories with exceptional tools, is developed in interstellar space and in outer galaxies.

Elitzur notes how the book will assist those -- whether professors or graduate students – who desire more information on maser emission, molecular radio astronomy, or just more knowledge in areas of astronomy, astrophysics and physics.

Moshe Elitzer is a professor of physics and astronomy in the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Kentucky. He holds a bachelor’s degree from Hebrew University in Jerusalem, Israel, and master’s and doctorate degrees from the Weizman Institute of Science in Rehovot, Israel. He is the author of several books and articles. His areas of expertise include infrared dust emission with attention to young stellar objects and winds around evolved stars, active galactic nuclei and astronomical masers.