astronomy

[uh-stron-uh-mee] /əˈstrɒn ə mi/

noun

the science that deals with the material universe beyond the earth's atmosphere.

Origin

1175-1225; Middle English astronomie (< Anglo-French) < Latin astronomia < Greek. See astro-, -nomy

Examples from the web for astronomy

The discovery of habitable planets around other stars is one of the great goals of modern astronomy.
Already, students have created personalized applications in study areas such as astronomy.
The invention of the telescope sparked Galileo's interest in astronomy and his subsequent discoveries led to his arrest.
Radio astronomy began with static.
His particular interest is astronomy, and he'd love to go to outer space.
They are spectacular phenomena even by the inflated standards of astronomy.
Backyard astronomy is a fantastic hobby.
Both astronomy buffs and armchair explorers will revel in his tale.
Both astronomy and paleontology qualify as sciences.
It was 1933, and this was the birth of radio astronomy.

British Dictionary definitions for astronomy

astronomy

/əˈstrɒnəmɪ/

noun

the scientific study of the individual celestial bodies (excluding the earth) and of the universe as a whole. Its various branches include astrometry, astrodynamics, cosmology, and astrophysics

Word Origin

C13: from Old French astronomie, from Latin astronomia, from Greek; see astro-, -nomy

Word Origin and History for astronomy

c.1200, from Old French astrenomie, from Latin astronomia, from Greek astronomia, literally "star arrangement," from astron "star" (see astro-) + nomos "arranging, regulating," related to nemein "to deal out" (see numismatics). Used earlier than astrology and originally including it.

astronomy in Science

astronomy

(ə-strŏn'ə-mē)
The scientific study of the universe and the objects in it, including stars, planets, nebulae, and galaxies. Astronomy deals with the position, size, motion, composition, energy, and evolution of celestial objects. Astronomers analyze not only visible light but also radio waves, x-rays, and other ranges of radiation that come from sources outside the Earth's atmosphere.

astronomy in Culture

astronomy definition

The science that deals with the universe beyond the Earth. It describes the nature, position, and motion of the stars, planets, and other objects in the skies, and their relation to the Earth.

astronomy in the Bible

The Hebrews were devout students of the wonders of the starry firmanent (Amos 5:8; Ps. 19). In the Book of Job, which is the oldest book of the Bible in all probability, the constellations are distinguished and named. Mention is made of the "morning star" (Rev. 2:28; comp. Isa. 14:12), the "seven stars" and "Pleiades," "Orion," "Arcturus," the "Great Bear" (Amos 5:8; Job 9:9; 38:31), "the crooked serpent," Draco (Job 26:13), the Dioscuri, or Gemini, "Castor and Pollux" (Acts 28:11). The stars were called "the host of heaven" (Isa. 40:26; Jer. 33:22). The oldest divisions of time were mainly based on the observation of the movements of the heavenly bodies, the "ordinances of heaven" (Gen. 1:14-18; Job 38:33; Jer. 31:35; 33:25). Such observations led to the division of the year into months and the mapping out of the appearances of the stars into twelve portions, which received from the Greeks the name of the "zodiac." The word "Mazzaroth" (Job 38:32) means, as the margin notes, "the twelve signs" of the zodiac. Astronomical observations were also necessary among the Jews in order to the fixing of the proper time for sacred ceremonies, the "new moons," the "passover," etc. Many allusions are found to the display of God's wisdom and power as seen in the starry heavens (Ps. 8; 19:1-6; Isa. 51:6, etc.)