The Radio Sky and How to Observe It / Astronomers' Observing Guides (PDF)

Jeff Lashley is a technical support engineer at the National Space Centre in Leicester, UK. He has written regularly for Sunderland and Dundee newspapers. His most recent article on Radio Astronomy was published in the Radio Society of Great Britain magazine Radcom, in January 2007.

From the reviews:

“Lashley (National Space Centre, UK) draws on his own work building and observing with radio telescopes and receivers and provides detailed instructions for building several radio detectors … . accessible to readers with minimal background in astronomy or electronics … . this practical guide will likely be useful to those with a specific interest in this topic. Summing Up … upper-division undergraduate and graduate students interested in building a radio telescope.” (C. Palma, Choice, Vol. 48 (9), May, 2011)

“Observing the sky in the radio domain, although perfectly accessible to the keen amateur, requires dedication and practical skills beyond those normally needed for optical work. … the rewards are great and those observers willing to follow Lashley’s succinct advice will undoubtedly increase their enjoyment of the sky. … inexperienced will also benefit from Lashley’s no-nonsense exposition. … If you enjoy a challenge as well as the thrill of discovery, there can be no better introduction to the field of radio astronomy than Lashley’s book.” (Alastair Gunn, Sky at Night Magazine, July, 2011)

“Jeff Lashley has obviously put in an immense amount of work in compiling this book and the result is a very worthwhile manual that should make it far easier for amateurs to take up this interesting area of astronomy. More than that, a colleague is seriously considering its use as a text for aspiring postgraduate radio astronomers. That is, in itself, real and deserved praise for a book that can be highly recommended.” (Ian Morison, The Observatory, Vol. 132 (1226), February, 2012)