astronaut: Someone trained to travel into space for research and exploration.
astronomy: The area of science that deals with celestial objects, space and the physical universe. People who work in this field are called astronomers.
astrophysicist: A scientist who works in an area of astronomy that deals with understanding the physical nature of stars and other objects in space.
black hole: A region of space having a gravitational field so intense that no matter or radiation (including light) can escape.
data: Facts and/or statistics collected together for analysis but not necessarily organized in a way that gives them meaning. For digital information (the type stored by computers), those data typically are numbers stored in a binary code, portrayed as strings of zeros and ones.
field: An area of study, as in: Her field of research is biology. Also a term to describe a real-world environment in which some research is conducted, such as at sea, in a forest, on a mountaintop or on a city street. It is the opposite of an artificial setting, such as a research laboratory. (in physics) A region in space where certain physical effects operate, such as magnetism (created by a magnetic field), gravity (by a gravitational field), mass (by a Higgs field) or electricity (by an electrical field).
grad school: Short for graduate school. A university program that offers advanced degrees, such as a master’s or PhD degree. It’s called graduate school because it is started only after someone has already graduated from college (usually with a four-year degree).
NASA: Short for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Created in 1958, this U.S. agency has become a leader in space research and in stimulating public interest in space exploration. It was through NASA that the United States sent people into orbit and ultimately to the moon. It also has sent research craft to study planets and other celestial objects in our solar system.
physics: The scientific…
Read the full article here