Astronomy 101

Unsolved Problems in Astronomy

Although the scientific discipline of astronomy has made tremendous strides in understanding the nature of the universe and its contents, there remain some important unanswered questions. Answers to these may require the construction of new ground- and space-based instruments, and possibly new developments in theoretical and experimental physics.

• What is the origin of the stellar mass spectrum? That is, why do astronomers observe the same distribution of stellar masses – the initial mass function –

Amateur astronomy

Interdisciplinary Studies

Astronomy and astrophysics have developed significant interdisciplinary links with other major scientific fields. Archaeoastronomy is the study of ancient or traditional astronomies in their cultural context, utilizing 

Specific Subfields of Astronomy 6

Cosmology

Cosmology (from the Greek κόσμος "world, universe" and λόγος "word, study") could be considered the study of the universe as a whole.

Observations of the large-scale structure of the universe, a branch known as 

Specific Subfields of Astronomy 5

Extragalactic astronomy

This image shows several blue, loop-shaped objects that are multiple images of the same galaxy, duplicated by thegravitational lens effect of the cluster