Astronomer Astronomer An astronomer or astrophysicist is a scientist whose area of research is astronomy or astrophysics.Johannes Hevelius was famed for his work on sunspots and being the first to study the surface of the moon.
Astronomy is generally thought to have begun in ancient Babylon by the Persian Zoroastrian priests the magi Recent studies of Babylonian records have shown them to be extremely accurate for the ancient night sky Following the Babylonians the egyptians also had an emphasis on observations of the sky.
Mixtures of religious interpretations of the sky as mythic tales of the gods led to a duality that we now identify as astrology It is important to recognize that before about there was no distinction between astronomy and astrology.
Unlike most scientists astronomers cannot directly interact with the celestial bodies and so instead must resort to detailed observation in order to make discoveries Generally astronomers use telescopes or other imaging equipment to make such observations.
 Famous astronomers.
 See also.
 Amateur astronomy
 List of astronomers
There is also a well known painting by Johannes Vermeer titled The Astronomer which is often linked to Vermeer's The Geographer These paintings are both thought to represent the growing influence and rise in prominence of scientific inquiry in Europe at the time of their painting.