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The science of the Earth in all its splendor.

Over the Rivers is the second volume in the exciting Aerial View of Geology series (the first was the highly praised Over the Mountains). As as a geologist, one of America's premier aerial photographers and a gifted science writer, Michael Collier is exceptionally well qualified to present these spectacular landscapes and stunning aerial photographs that vividly demonstrate geological processes.

Vivid text and clear captions guide readers through the exciting photographs, enhancing their understanding of fundamental geological processes. Collier explores, for example:

• How a 6,000-foot-deep canyon was carved out by the erosive power of a single river
• How violent tectonic forces millions of years ago vaulted a river over a mountain
• Why one river takes its time meandering, another suddenly drops over a cliff, and a third slowly separates into a sprawling delta.

Over the Rivers inspires as it informs, and dazzles as it enlightens.

Introducing An Aerial View of Geology series.

Geology is thrilling. It's the Earth in all its splendor. Unfortunately, geology texts rarely communicate that sense of excitement.

Enter Michael Collier, geologist, writer and one of America's premier aerial photographers. For over 20 years, he has piloted his Cessna 180 to inaccessible locations and returned with stunning photographs that lay bare the Earth's workings.

Over the Mountains, the first book in Michael Collier's new series, focuses on geology's most spectacular subject in a most spectacular way. It includes:

• Detailed and breathtaking large-format color photographs covering the geology of every major mountain range in the United States
• Clear, easy-to-understand text, diagrams and captions that explain and illuminate the geologic processes shown in the photographs.

After exploring the pages of Over the Mountains, readers will never think of mountains -- or geology -- in the same way again.

A major objective of the text is to stimulate student interest and curiosity by blending contemporary information and research with basic principles to form an integrated introduction to the sciences of the oceans. To keep the text as current as possible, the authors conduct their own research and examine other findings such as analyzing satellite data and large-scale oceanographic programs. From this vast amount of data, they select interesting, relevant, and understandable examples that illustrate contemporary principles of oceanography.. .

The recent discovery of the remains of ancient villages buried beneath the Black Sea is the latest instance of mounting evidence that many of the "mythic" catastrophes of history--the fall of Atlantis, the Biblical Flood--were actual events. In Catastrophobia Barbara Hand Clow shows that a series of cataclysmic disasters, caused by a massive disturbance in the Earth's crust 11,500 years ago, rocked the world and left humanity's collective psyche permanently scarred. We are a wounded species, and this unprocessed fear, passed from generation to generation, is responsible for our constant expectations of apocalypse, from Y2K to the famed end of the Mayan calendar in 2012.

A fascinating examination of the earth's oceans

This exhaustive overview of oceanography captures the excitement of discovery in the making. The Oceans opens up the world of ocean science to the general reader and raises significant questions about the future of the ancient, nurturing ocean itself.

The focus of the text is on comprehension of concepts, patterns, and issues rather than on memorization of facts and figures. The latter are provided, but they are intended primarily to illustrate the underlying conditions rather than to serve as the focus of the text.

"One does not have to look to the universe to behold the unusual. There is so much more to be seen and believed right here in the frequently bizarre nature of New Zealand." -from the prologue

This stunning book combines spectacular photography with natural history and personal experience to guide readers into "the land of the long white cloud." Second only to Hawaii in natural diversity, the New Zealand archipelago has borne centuries of environmental tumult and species destruction. At present, dedicated conservationists are working hard to revive shattered ecosystems and to restore endangered species.

In a heartfelt tribute to those efforts, the authors chronicle the environmental successes and failures while revealing the islands' otherworldly organisms and plant life. All of the photographs were taken either in the wild or in conservation areas, and many reveal plants and creatures rarely before seen.