My Career-Astronomer
What do you see on the night sky, you might see stars, the moon and sometimes bright planets. Astronomers study all of this and more that we all have wondered in this universe. The definition of an astronomer is someone that studies stars, planets, comet, and galaxies, as well as other objects in space. I'd like to be an astronomer because they study everything about what is happening to space and how is changing each time. Astronomy has been here since civilizations were created because many people wanted to know how the universe came to be as it is today.
Astronomy's history has been one of the oldest science. We people have been trying to study how the universe was formed since we started to formed civilizations. The firsts astronomers were priests and holy men, but looking way behind in ancient Greece greeks developed a theories about how the universe was formed. With early astronomers observations of the moon led to them knowing that Earth was around. One of the most famous astronomers as of today is Steven Hawkins, he said that the universe has a beginning and an end. Roger Penrose is another astronomer, he expanded the understanding of black holes by showing singularities in space were the ones who made them. Also Robert Wilson was an astronomer, he was a co-discover of the cosmic microwaves background radiation.
To be an astronomer you have to study math, science and computing in high school and most of the astronomers to work need a Ph. D in the field of astronomy, that usually takes about 5-7 years to be completed. What this program contains is astrophysics, stellar and planetary physics, galaxies, cosmology, interstellar medium and optics. Astronomers after they complete this they have to enter postdoctoral research that takes 2-3 years to complete. They work under senior astronomers before they go out to the real world and work. The ones who work for the federal government need to obtain proper security clearance. Some jobs that are related to astronomy are planetary astronomer, radio astronomer, solar and stellar astronomer, and cosmologist. A planetary astronomer studies planets in our solar system and other planets outside our solar system. A radio astronomers uses radio telescopes that is basically radio waves from stars and other objects. Solar and stellar astronomer is they study the sun and the stars. A cosmologist studies the evolution of the universe and the nature of time and space.
An astronomer's work hours may be unusual per week in a week they could go for fifty to sixty hours working. The environment they work on is much like an office but they also go outside to see with ground base equipment to help them see farther in space. Also they use space equipment to see objects in space and to make observations. Some of the duties of an astronomer are that they use computers to research data to determine an objects significance, they calculate orbits like the size of it, shape and what brightness they have. Also they develop theories about their personal observations, they work with other astronomers in projects and they also present what they have observed at scientific conferences.
Astronomers face many challenges in their careers like some of them had to ask for money in order to make research. Other things that are challenging is that you need to have dedication and discipline to maintain the job. They have almost ten years of study in astronomy and other subjects that are required. There is also positive perks about being an astronomer, they get to study about stars galaxies, life in other planets, the Universe and everything there is in it. This job benefits society as a whole by letting us know whats in space. They publish books or magazines, take pictures of the things they find and they tell us in interviews. There's a lot of things that we need to know about the universe that makes us wonder and that's why astronomers are here.
This career is important and necessary in our society because because with out this career we wouldn't of have developed new technology for us to study the Universe and what is in the universe. This career is great for anyone that loves to learn about our solar system and would like to learn what's out there out of it. They would discover new planets, stars, how the universe was created and so many other things. After they're experienced you could earn more money but if you actually like what they're doing then they wouldn't care about it, they would care about what's out there in this big universe we are in.
Websites-
http://space.about.com/cs/astronomy101/a/astro101b.htm
Astronomy's history has been one of the oldest science. We people have been trying to study how the universe was formed since we started to formed civilizations. The firsts astronomers were priests and holy men, but looking way behind in ancient Greece greeks developed a theories about how the universe was formed. With early astronomers observations of the moon led to them knowing that Earth was around. One of the most famous astronomers as of today is Steven Hawkins, he said that the universe has a beginning and an end. Roger Penrose is another astronomer, he expanded the understanding of black holes by showing singularities in space were the ones who made them. Also Robert Wilson was an astronomer, he was a co-discover of the cosmic microwaves background radiation.
To be an astronomer you have to study math, science and computing in high school and most of the astronomers to work need a Ph. D in the field of astronomy, that usually takes about 5-7 years to be completed. What this program contains is astrophysics, stellar and planetary physics, galaxies, cosmology, interstellar medium and optics. Astronomers after they complete this they have to enter postdoctoral research that takes 2-3 years to complete. They work under senior astronomers before they go out to the real world and work. The ones who work for the federal government need to obtain proper security clearance. Some jobs that are related to astronomy are planetary astronomer, radio astronomer, solar and stellar astronomer, and cosmologist. A planetary astronomer studies planets in our solar system and other planets outside our solar system. A radio astronomers uses radio telescopes that is basically radio waves from stars and other objects. Solar and stellar astronomer is they study the sun and the stars. A cosmologist studies the evolution of the universe and the nature of time and space.
An astronomer's work hours may be unusual per week in a week they could go for fifty to sixty hours working. The environment they work on is much like an office but they also go outside to see with ground base equipment to help them see farther in space. Also they use space equipment to see objects in space and to make observations. Some of the duties of an astronomer are that they use computers to research data to determine an objects significance, they calculate orbits like the size of it, shape and what brightness they have. Also they develop theories about their personal observations, they work with other astronomers in projects and they also present what they have observed at scientific conferences.
Astronomers face many challenges in their careers like some of them had to ask for money in order to make research. Other things that are challenging is that you need to have dedication and discipline to maintain the job. They have almost ten years of study in astronomy and other subjects that are required. There is also positive perks about being an astronomer, they get to study about stars galaxies, life in other planets, the Universe and everything there is in it. This job benefits society as a whole by letting us know whats in space. They publish books or magazines, take pictures of the things they find and they tell us in interviews. There's a lot of things that we need to know about the universe that makes us wonder and that's why astronomers are here.
This career is important and necessary in our society because because with out this career we wouldn't of have developed new technology for us to study the Universe and what is in the universe. This career is great for anyone that loves to learn about our solar system and would like to learn what's out there out of it. They would discover new planets, stars, how the universe was created and so many other things. After they're experienced you could earn more money but if you actually like what they're doing then they wouldn't care about it, they would care about what's out there in this big universe we are in.
Websites-
http://space.about.com/cs/astronomy101/a/astro101b.htm
