Sandbox
From SingastroWiki
Click on 'edit' and try editing this sentence. Go ahead, try it right now!
Astronomy
Go ahead and try editing this text.
copied from wikipedia:astronomy Astronomy is the science of celestial objects (such as stars, planets, comets, and galaxies) and phenomena that originate outside the Earth's atmosphere (such as auroras and cosmic background radiation). It is concerned with the evolution, physics, chemistry, meteorology, and motion of celestial objects, as well as the formation and development of the universe. The word astronomy literally means "law of the stars" and is derived from the Greek αστρονομία, astronomia, from the words άστρον (astron, "stars") and νόμος (nomos, "law").
Astronomy is one of the oldest sciences. Astronomers of early civilizations performed methodical observations of the night sky, and astronomical artifacts have been found from much earlier periods. However, the invention of the telescope was required before astronomy was able to develop into a modern science.
Since the 20th century, the field of professional astronomy has split into observational astronomy and theoretical astrophysics. Observational astronomy is concerned with acquiring data, which involves building and maintaining instruments, as well as processing the results. Theoretical astrophysics is focused upon ascertaining the observational implications of computer or analytic models. The two fields complement each other, with theoretical astrophysics seeking to explain the observational results. Astronomical observations can be used to test fundamental theories in physics, such as general relativity.
Historically, amateur astronomers have contributed to many important astronomical discoveries, and astronomy is one of the few sciences where amateurs can still play an active role, especially in the discovery and observation of transient phenomena.
Modern astronomy is not to be confused with astrology, the belief system that claims that human affairs are correlated with the positions of celestial objects. Although the two fields share a common origin, most thinkers in both fields believe they are now distinct.[1]
