astronomer
nounUK /əˈstɹɒn.ə.mə/ · CA, US /əˈstɹɑ.nə.mɚ/
Etymology From Middle English astronomer, equivalent to astronomy + -er. Displaced native Old English tungolcræftiga.
1
Astronomy, Natural sciences One who studies astronomy, the stars or the physical universe; a scientist whose area of research is astronomy or astrophysics.
- Pioneering American astronomer Vera Rubin once mentored fellow aspiring female astronomers and advocated for women in science. It’s fitting that the first national US observatory named for a female astronomer is in her honor.2020 January 7, Ashley Strickland, “First US observatory named in honor of a female astronomer, Vera Rubin”, in CNN:
- But none of those brown dwarfs were speeding along on a trajectory that would carry them out of the galaxy like “runaway” hypervelocity stars observed by astronomers in the last two decades.2024 August 21, Ashley Strickland, “An unusual object is moving so fast it could escape the Milky Way. Scientists aren’t certain what it is”, in CNN:
- Synonyms
- astro-boffin, astronomist
- Derived terms
- archaeoastronomer, astronomeress, astronomer-priest, bioastronomer, ethnoastronomer, nonastronomer, radio astronomer, radioastronomer
- Related terms
- Astronomer Royal, cosmologist
- Hyponyms
- astronomeress, astronomess