Astronomer - Modern Astronomers

Modern Astronomers

Contrary to the classical image of an old astronomer peering through a telescope through the dark hours of the night, it is very rare for a modern professional astronomer to use an eyepiece on a larger telescope. It is far more common to use a charge-coupled device camera to record a long, deep exposure, allowing a more sensitive image to be created because the light is added over time. Before CCDs, photographic plates were a common method of observation. Modern astronomers spend relatively little time at telescopes - most spend a few weeks per year observing, and the rest of their time reducing the data (changing it from raw data to processed images) and analyzing it. Many astronomers work entirely from astronomical survey or space observatory data. Others work with radio telescopes like the Very Large Array, which is entirely automated, although it is maintained by telescope operators. Some astronomers do not work with data at all, but instead use computational simulations or analytical models to provide analysis of observed phenomena or make predictions for observational astronomers.

Astronomers who serve as faculty spend much of their time teaching undergraduate and graduate classes. Most universities also have outreach programs including public telescope time and sometimes planetariums as a public service and to encourage interest in the field.