Built from the ground up on our new understanding of the universe, The Cosmic Perspective, Media Update, Second Edition is a reader-friendly book that focuses on central ideas and unifying themes to provide a cosmic context. Scientific concepts are linked to everyday experience to help readers develop an appreciation for the scientific method and to see how physics and astronomy are foundations for understanding their world, and recent discoveries spark readers' curiosity in the universe as a whole. The book opens with an overview of the evolving universe to give readers a big picture that is returned to throughout the book. Departing from the traditional planet-by-planet facts and figures, the book emphasizes the similarities between planets by exploring connecting processes, as well as the evolving vision of galaxies and dark matter.