The all-inclusive treatise on "Astrodynamics" by Richard H. Battin clearly must be counted among the great classics in scientific literature. This text documents the fundamental theoretical developments in astrodynamics and space navigation that eventually led to man's ventures into space. It includes all the essential elements of celestial mechanics, spacecraft trajectories, and space navigation as well as the his- tory of the underlying mathematical developments over the past three centuries culminating finally with the 20th century space exploration.