astronomer: A scientist who works in the field of research that deals with celestial objects, space and the physical universe.
average: (in science) A term for the arithmetic mean, which is the sum of a group of numbers that is then divided by the size of the group.
black hole: A region of space having a gravitational field so intense that no matter or radiation (including light) can escape.
cosmic: An adjective that refers to the cosmos — the universe and everything within it.
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.
entity: A person or thing that exists and can be defined or characterized on its own (meaning separate and apart from some general group).
galaxy: A group of stars — and usually invisible, mysterious dark matter — all held together by gravity. Giant galaxies, such as the Milky Way, often have more than 100 billion stars. The dimmest galaxies may have just a few thousand. Some galaxies also have gas and dust from which they make new stars.
mass: A number that shows how much an object resists speeding up and slowing down — basically a measure of how much matter that object is made from.
neutron star: The very dense corpse of what had once been a massive star. As the star died in a supernova explosion, its outer layers shot out into space. Its core then collapsed under its intense gravity, causing protons and electrons in its atoms to fuse into neutrons (hence the star’s name). A single teaspoonful of a neutron star, on Earth, would weigh more than a billion tons.
observatory: (in astronomy) The building or structure (such as a satellite) that houses one or more telescopes. Or it can be a system of structures that make up a telescope complex.
pulsar: The name for a spinning, ultra-dense neutron star. A single…
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