array: A broad and organized group of objects. Sometimes they are instruments placed in a systematic fashion to collect information in a coordinated way. Other times, an array can refer to things that are laid out or displayed in a way that can make a broad range of related things, such as colors, visible at once. The term can even apply to a range of options or choices.
astronomer: A scientist who works in the field of research that deals with celestial objects, space and the physical universe.
atmosphere: The envelope of gases surrounding Earth, another planet or a moon.
Big Bang: The rapid expansion of dense matter that, according to current theory, marked the origin of the universe. It is supported by astronomers’ current understanding of the composition and structure of the universe.
black hole: A region of space having a gravitational field so intense that no matter or radiation (including light) can escape.
celestial object: Any naturally formed objects of substantial size in space. Examples include comets, asteroids, planets, moons, stars and galaxies.
cosmic microwave background: A type of radiation that fills the universe with a faint glow. It seems to flow in all directions and with an equal intensity. It’s the heat left over from the Big Bang and that should exist throughout the universe. It is estimated to be about 2.725 degrees above absolute zero.
cosmos: (adj. cosmic) A term that refers to the universe and everything within it.
crater: A large, bowl-shaped cavity in the ground or on the surface of a planet or the moon. They are typically caused by an explosion or the impact of a meteorite or other celestial body. Such an impact is sometimes referred to as a cratering event.
current: A fluid — such as of water or air — that moves in a recognizable direction. (in electricity) The flow of electricity or the amount of charge moving through some material over a particular period of time.
event horizon: An imaginary sphere that surrounds a black hole. The more massive the black hole, the bigger the sphere. Anything that happens inside the event horizon is invisible, because gravity is so strong that under normal circumstances even light can’t escape. But according to some theories of physics, in certain situations small amounts of radiation can escape.
field: (in physics) A region in space where certain physical effects operate, such as magnetism (created by a magnetic field), gravity (by a gravitational field), mass (by a Higgs field) or electricity (by an electrical field).
focus: (in physics) The point at which rays (of light or heat for example) converge sometimes with the aid of a lens. (In vision, verb, “to focus”) The action a person’s eyes take to adapt to light and distance, enabling them to see objects clearly. (in behavior) To look or concentrate intently on some particular point or thing.
infrared: A type of electromagnetic radiation invisible to the human eye. The name incorporates a Latin term and means “below red.” Infrared light has wavelengths longer than those visible to humans. Other invisible wavelengths include X-rays, radio waves and microwaves. Infrared light tends to record the heat signature of an object or environment.
Jupiter: (in astronomy) The solar system’s largest planet, it has the shortest day length (9 hours, 55 minutes). A gas giant, its low density indicates that this planet is composed mostly of the light elements hydrogen and helium. This planet also releases more heat than it receives from the sun as gravity compresses its mass (and slowly shrinks the planet).
kelvin: A temperature scale that has units the size of those on the Celsius scale. The difference, 0 kelvin is absolute zero. So 0 kelvin is equal to -273.15 Celsius. That means 0 Celsius is equal to 273.15 kelvins. NOTE: Unlike with the Celsius and Fahrenheit scales, there is no use of the term “degrees” for numbers on the kelvin scale.
lens: (in biology) A transparent part of the eye behind the colored iris that focuses incoming light onto the light-absorbing membrane at the back of the eyeball. (in physics) A transparent material that can either focus or spread out parallel rays of light as they pass through it. (in optics) A curved piece of transparent material (such as glass) that bends incoming light in such a way as to focus it at a particular point in space. Or something, such as gravity, that can mimic some of the light bending attributes of a physical lens. (in social issues) An attitude or perspective that helps bring broad issues into focus.
light pollution: The intrusion of unwanted light into areas that would naturally remain dark. Light pollution interferes with our ability to view the night sky. It also alters the circadian rhythms of plants, animals and people.
magnetic field: An area of influence created by certain materials, called magnets, or by the movement of electric charges.
microwaves: An electromagnetic wave with a wavelength shorter than that of normal radio waves but longer than those of infrared radiation (heat) and of visible light.
molecule: An electrically neutral group of atoms that represents the smallest possible amount of a chemical compound. Molecules can be made of single types of atoms or of different types. For example, the oxygen in the air is made of two oxygen atoms (O2), but water is made of two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom (H2O).
moon: The natural satellite of any planet.
network: A group of interconnected people or things. (v.) The act of connecting with other people who work in a given area or do similar thing (such as artists, business leaders or medical-support groups), often by going to gatherings where such people would be expected, and then chatting them up. (n. networking)
observatory: (in astronomy) The building or structure (such as a satellite) that houses one or more telescopes.
orbit: The curved path of a celestial object or spacecraft around a galaxy, star, planet or moon. One complete circuit around a celestial body.
peer: (noun) Someone who is an equal, based on age, education, status, training or some other features. (verb) To look into something, searching for details.
planet: A large celestial object that orbits a star but unlike a star does not generate any visible light.
range: The full extent or distribution of something.
remnant: Something that is leftover — from another piece of something, from another time or even some features from an earlier species.
Saturn: The sixth planet out from the sun in our solar system. One of the two gas giants, this planet takes 10.6 hours to rotate (completing a day) and 29.5 Earth years to complete one orbit of the sun. It has at least 82 moons. But what most distinguishes this planet is the broad and flat plane of bright rings that orbit it.
solar: Having to do with the sun or the radiation it emits. It comes from sol, Latin for sun.
sound wave: A wave that transmits sound. Sound waves have alternating swaths of high and low pressure.
spectrum: (plural: spectra) A range of related things that appear in some order. (in light and energy) The range of electromagnetic radiation types; they span from gamma rays to X rays, ultraviolet light, visible light, infrared energy, microwaves and radio waves.
star: The basic building block from which galaxies are made. Stars develop when gravity compacts clouds of gas. When they become hot enough, stars will emit light and sometimes other forms of electromagnetic radiation. The sun is our closest star.
steer: To guide the movement of something (a vehicle, a person or an idea) in some particular direction. (in agriculture) A castrated male bovine raised for meat.
sun: The star at the center of Earth’s solar system. It is about 27,000 light-years from the center of the Milky Way galaxy. Also a term for any sunlike star.
supernova: (plural: supernovae or supernovas) A star that suddenly increases greatly in brightness because of a catastrophic explosion that ejects most (or sometimes all) of its mass.
system: A network of parts that together work to achieve some function. For instance, the blood, vessels and heart are primary components of the human body’s circulatory system. Similarly, trains, platforms, tracks, roadway signals and overpasses are among the potential components of a nation’s railway system. System can even be applied to the processes or ideas that are part of some method or ordered set of procedures for getting a task done.
troposphere: The lowest level of Earth’s atmosphere. It runs from the planet’s surface to a height of 8 to 14 kilometers (5 to 9 miles), depending on the latitude. It’s the region where the air is thickest and where most weather occurs. Air currents moving through this region often flow not only horizontally, but often vertically (up and down).
ultraviolet: A portion of the light spectrum that is close to violet but invisible to the human eye.
universe: The entire cosmos: All things that exist throughout space and time. It has been expanding since its formation during an event known as the Big Bang, some 13.8 billion years ago (give or take a few hundred million years).
water vapor: Water in its gaseous state, capable of being suspended in the air.
wavelength: The distance between one peak and the next in a series of waves, or the distance between one trough and the next. It’s also one of the “yardsticks” used to measure radiation. Visible light — which, like all electromagnetic radiation, travels in waves — includes wavelengths between about 380 nanometers (violet) and about 740 nanometers (red). Radiation with wavelengths shorter than visible light includes gamma rays, X-rays and ultraviolet light. Longer-wavelength radiation includes infrared light, microwaves and radio waves.
X-ray: A type of radiation analogous to gamma rays, but having somewhat lower energy.
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