Astronomy is the scientific study of the entire universe. While the word 'astronomy' comes from Greek for "science of the stars", astronomers study a wide range of subjects including atmospheres of planets, stars, gas and dust, individual galaxies, arrangement of galaxies, and how things have changed over the lifetime of the universe. Astronomers study a certain kind of object or behavior and try to understand how it works. Maybe this means looking at a class of asteroids, or one particular galaxy, or one kind of star in different galaxies.

The foundation of astronomy is physics and mathematics, so astronomers use fundamental forces like gravity and electromagnetism to understand what they observe in space, to find patterns, and to make predictions. This includes an amazing range of sizes where small things like sub-atomic particles, photons, atoms, molecules, and dust grains determine the behavior of large things like planets, stars, and galaxies.

Astronomy can be a passive science, for instance an astronomer interested in planet formation cannot set up a real solar system in the lab and study it from start to finish. Instead, the laboratory is the entire universe and the experiment is continuously in progress. Since many interesting objects are too far away to visit, astronomers are very good at learning as much as they can just by looking at the light from objects. Sometimes, however, astronomers can use laboratories to reproduce conditions found in astronomical settings. These experiments range from re-creating the ice on Europa's surface to heating material to the temperatures found in the hearts of stars.

Modern astronomy also makes use of computer modeling to test ideas: while it is impossible to create an entire galaxy in a lab, a rough model of one can be created on a computer. An astronomer can build a rough computer model of a galaxy with gas, dust, and stars and tell the computer the physics of how these components should behave. How this galaxy looks over millions or billions of years could then be compared to observations of real galaxies. If the model matches observations, then an astronomer would assume they have a good idea of how a galaxy works; if the model doesn't match observations, or doesn't match them all, that implies there is more to be discovered!

• Jillian's Guide to Black Holes is a section I wrote as an informal and easy-to-read introduction to these mysterious objects.

• HubbleSite collects all of the spectacular images and news produced by the amazing Hubble Space Telescope.


• Astronomy Picture of the Day has a different astronomy image each day along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer.
  
  
• Space.com presents top stories about space and astronomy in an eye-catching format.


• Universe Today presents current topics in astronomy in an easy-to-read format.


• Star Date is McDonald Observatory's outreach radio program/podcast and each week features a different topic in astronomy.


• Sky and Telescope Magazine features articles about professional and amateur astronomy, as well as tips for viewing the night sky.


• NASA's Imagine the Universe an education site for people interested in learning about the universe


• NASA's Amazing Space uses the Hubble Space Telescope's discoveries to inspire and educate about the wonders of our universe


• Bad Astronomy is written by astronomer Phil Plait to debunk bad astronomy in movies, tv shows, and other places. He also writes a blog for Discover magazine.


• Ask the Space Scientist has a large collection of FAQs that have to do with the Sun, the Earth and their various interactionshas, including an archive of questions people have asked, ranging from introductory to complicated


• Ask an Astrophysicist has a large archive of answer questions on many topics, but if you can't find your question listed then you should ask them!

• Zooniverse has half a million people around the world are helping scientists with their data!

  Planet Hunters discovers new planets
  Galaxy Zoo classify galaxies from massive surveys
  Milky Way discovers how stars are born
  Moon Zoo explore the surface of the Moon
  Solar Storm Watch studies flares and explosions on the Sun
  Ice Hunters looks for the object the New Horizons mission will visit after Pluto

• Stardust@Home lets you look through data images to find rare interstellar grains in the samples brought back to Earth by NASA's Stardust mission.


• Einstein@Home uses your computer to help sort through data from observatories looking for elusive gravitational waves.


• American Association of Variable Star Observers (AAVSO) has been monitoring variable stars since 1911. You, too, can help astronomers study the wonderful variety of variable stars.

• Check out Sky&Telescope's What's up Tonight or EarthSky's Tonight to find out the best objects to view each week.


• Skymaps has free maps of the night sky each month.


• NightSky Network is a nationwide coalition of amateur astronomy clubs bringing the science, technology, and inspiration of NASA's missions to the general public


• Attend a local amateur astronomy star party or become an amateur astronomer yourself.


• Attend shows at a planetarium.

• NASA's Education Resource Center helps teachers learn about all the amazing teaching aids they've developed, including

  NASA for Educators with information for a range of student ages
  NASA's SEGway the science education gateway
  NASA's Imagine the Universe developed lesson plans and activities
  NASA's Amazing Space has some good teaching tools
  NASA's Night Sky Network has a collection of activities and resources
  NASA's SpacePlace has activities for the classroom
  NASA's Education TV shows short videos on a variety of topics

• The Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics developed Astronomy Resources for Intercurricular Elementary Science (ARIES), a wide range of indoor and outdoor discovery-based activities using affordable materials


• The Chandra X-ray observatory provides a series of formal and informal activities, lessons, and podcasts, the Everyday Classroom Tools (ECT) inquiry-based classroom, and also provides free posters, printouts, and activity sets


• The Stanford Solar Center provides a collection of multi-disciplinary, interactive exercises and activities based on the Sun and solar science


• McDonald Observatory's StarDate developed some good lesson plans and activities


• The Astronomical Society of the Pacific (ASP) developed a series of classroom-tested activities and has a collection of web activities


• Kinesthetic Astronomy emphasizes astronomical concepts and phenomenon that people can readily encounter in their everyday lives


• Contemporary Laboratory Experiences in Astronomy (CLEA) develops laboratory exercises that illustrate modern astronomical techniques using digital data and color images


• Starship Asterisk* the discussion forum for APOD, full of helpful people; check out their library of education resources

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