Space Is the Place: A Galaxy of Far Out Words: From Ascension to Zenith: Astronomy and Stargazing Terms

The night sky is full of wonders, and this list will help you make sense of what you see. Learn this list and become a vocabulary star!
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. alignment
    apparent meeting or passing of two or more celestial bodies
    “The moon and Venus are in perfect alignment,” he continued, pointing his camera at the sky, where the first whispers of dawn hadn’t yet dimmed the stars. Washington Post (Jul 17, 2020)
    Ligne means "line" in French, and when things aline they line up. It's fairly common to hear people stay "the stars are in alignment" when they're talking about good luck.
  2. altitude
    angular distance above the horizon
    The pilot of Mahan Air Flight 1152 quickly took the aircraft to a lower altitude to avoid a collision, the report said. Seattle Times (Jul 24, 2020)
  3. ascension
    (astronomy) the rising of a star above the horizon
    Balloons were mostly tethered to the ground Saturday because of fog and that mass ascension was canceled. Washington Times (Oct 6, 2019)
    Ascendere means "to climb" or "to go up" in Latin; its opposite descendere gives us descend.
  4. astrology
    divination by the positions of the planets and sun and moon
    Sixty percent said they hold at least one “new age” belief, like astrology, psychics or crystals. New York Times (Jul 3, 2020)
    Astrologia is Ancient Greek for "a telling of the stars," meaning fortune-telling based on the Zodiac and other mythical constructs.
  5. astronomical
    relating to the branch of physics studying celestial bodies
    An astronomical unit, which measures the distance between the Earth and the sun, is approximately 93 million miles. Fox News (Jul 22, 2020)
  6. astronomy
    the branch of physics that studies celestial bodies
    She uses a donated telescope for astronomy classes, but felt she needed another, so she decided to build one. The Guardian (Jul 25, 2020)
    Astronomia is Greek for "the law of the stars." Unlike astrology, above, astronomy is based in science, using a variety of technologies to understand the workings of the universe.
  7. astrophysics
    the study of the properties of celestial bodies
    Perhaps more important, though, astrophysics, if not essential to our basic survival, is tied to the core of humanity itself—to understanding where, what and who we are. Scientific American (May 29, 2020)
  8. eclipse
    the phenomenon when one celestial body obscures another
    In Maiduguri, that same year, a total lunar eclipse sparked a riot, after local Muslim men took the eclipse as a sign that the city was overrun with immorality. The Guardian (Jul 9, 2020)
  9. horizon
    the line at which the sky and Earth appear to meet
    When it’s farther from the sun and visible above the horizon, it’s easier to spot during the day. Washington Post (Jul 20, 2020)
  10. lodestar
    guiding star
    Alcott idealized Marmee as “Little Women’s” moral center and lodestar — guiding her daughters’ development, nurturing their talents and encouraging their ambitions. New York Times (Jan 16, 2020)
    A lodestar is one that you use to navigate.
  11. nadir
    the point below the observer directly opposite the zenith
    The zenith is directly overhead, the nadir directly underfoot.
    If you're looking up at the stars and you draw a line down through the ground below your feet, the point in the sky above where that line emerges on the other side of the planet is the nadir.
  12. observatory
    a building equipped to view astronomical phenomena
    Researchers who manage the observatory spotted the comet in March when it was headed in the direction of the sun. New York Times (Jul 15, 2020)
  13. sidereal
    of or relating to the stars or constellations
    This figure is known as the "sidereal day" or "stellar day". BBC (Sep 15, 2017)
    Sidereus is Latin for "of the stars." The word consider originally meant "consult the stars," as in looking for omens or seeing an astrologer before making a decision.
  14. syzygy
    the straight line configuration of three celestial bodies
    When the perigee occurs at the same time as a full moon, we get a “perigee syzygy”—colloquially known as a supermoon. Slate (Dec 1, 2017)
    In Greek, sizigios means "yoked together" like two oxen ploughing a field. When three or more stars or planets line up from our point of view, that's known as a syzygy.
  15. zenith
    the highest point of something
    As the sun approached its zenith, and the park bustled with midday traffic, the heat transformed the hidey-hole into a wretched furnace. The Underground Railroad: A Novel
    Zenith is the opposite of nadir: the point in the sky directly above your head.
Created on Sun Jun 28 12:39:50 EDT 2020 (updated Tue Aug 04 12:22:56 EDT 2020)

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