The book was originally written by Professor John Roberson, with Professor Clayton Crowe adding the material on compressible flow. Professor Roberson retired from active authorship after the 6th edition, Professor Donald Elger joined on the 7th edition, and Professor Barbara Williams joined on the 9th edition. Professor Crowe retired from active authorship after the 9th edition. This l0th edition was developed by Professors Elger and Williams with Professor Crowe reviewing chapters for technical accuracy. Professor Crowe passed away on February 5, 2012. He was active on the book until a few weeks before his death and will be missed by his co-authors.
The chapters are organized to lay out the knowledge for students. Each chapter begins with statements of what is important to learn. These learning outcomes are formulated in terms of what Students will be able to do. Then, the sections present the knowledge. Last. the knowledge is summarized at the end of each chapter.