About the Author

Professor Fred Watson is astronomer in charge of the Anglo-Australian Observatory at Coonabarabran and is a regular broadcaster on ABC radio, where he has his own weekly program with a large following. In 2003, Fred received the David Allen Prize for communicating astronomy to the public, and in 2006 was the winner of the Australian Government Eureka Prize for Promoting Understanding of Science. Fred has an asteroid named after him but says that if it hits the Earth it won't be his fault . . . His last book for Allen + Unwin was Stargazer.