The exploration of space is not limited to the flights of astronauts aboard spacecraft and shuttles launched into space by rockets and boosters. That type of space exploration has a history that extends back only to the mid-twentieth century. At the...

Astronomers study the universe by measuring electromagnetic radiation—gamma rays, X rays, optical and infrared radiation, and radio waves—emitted by planets, stars, galaxies, and other distant objects. Because Earth's atmosphere is...

any structure containing telescopes and auxiliary instruments with which to observe celestial objects. Observatories can be classified on the basis of the part of the electromagnetic spectrum in which they are designed to observe. The largest number of...

Structure containing telescopes and other instruments for observing celestial objects and phenomena. Observatories can be classified by the part of the electromagnetic spectrum they can receive. Most are optical, observing in and near the region of the...

An observatory is a location used for observing terrestrial and/or celestial events. Astronomy, climatology/meteorology, geology, oceanography and volcanology are examples of disciplines for which observatories have been constructed. Historically,...